


Past Imperfect

by Aidaran, StarTravel



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: The Original Series
Genre: Alternate Timelines, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, And she's charming, Augments, Cardassia, Crossing Timelines, Dominion War (Star Trek), Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eugenics Wars (Star Trek), Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Fugitive Julian, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Language Barrier, Learning Language, M/M, Reconciling eugenic wars with bell riots, Road Trips, Sarina actually has a personality, Slow Burn, Solving Canon problems like champions, Starship Enterprise (Star Trek), The sole Cardassian on Earth, Time Travel, Timeline Shenanigans, Tribbles (Star Trek), USS Defiant NX-74205 (Star Trek), Unlike in the series, Vulcan Mind Meld, War, World Travel, XX century AU, botany bay, college dropout Julian, not working translators, orbs, plot heavy, the Bashirs were terrible, tribbles and tribulations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-30
Updated: 2020-04-27
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:33:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 66,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22034884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aidaran/pseuds/Aidaran, https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarTravel/pseuds/StarTravel
Summary: The year is 1995. Elim Garak has crossed some people on the new government, so he's sent to "survey" a backward planet, Earth, that's being ripped apart by a worldwide war. As his ship crashes and finds himself stranded and without a fully functional translator, he meets a young doctor, hiding from the army. Soon, they discover there's no safe place for them on the planet. But what about above? And what are Khan's plans for them?And something is very, very wrong with the timeline.
Relationships: James T. Kirk/Spock, Julian Bashir & Sarina Douglas, Julian Bashir/Elim Garak, Sarina Douglas & Elim Garak
Comments: 200
Kudos: 120





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is one of our most ambitious stories to date, and since Aidaran was basically crazy writing for it and plotting weird and exciting plot twists (she's a bit like a big golden retriever with too much energy), we'd really love to have comments, feedback, questions!
> 
> Don't worry if some strands seem lose at the beginning or the au setting seems unusual, everything has been thought carefully and will come together at the end.

March, 1995. Earth.

Garak was no stranger to getting on the wrong side of the wrong people.

While his career was based in adapting, hiding, and licking whatever boot was necessary at the time to get what he needed and stay alive at the same time, he also was the kind of man who liked to needle people until they snapped.

And so, he found a low ranking officer of the new government informing him with a far too wide smile that he was to go to a new posting, effective immediately. And it was on a remote, pre warp planet. He'd have to mix with the locals, however hard it looked for a scaled and tailed man, and wait until somebody decided to pick him up so he could inform the Cardassian council of his findings. Which could be in a week or a few years, no way to know, Garak understood, didn't he? It was for the glory of Cardassia after all.

He wondered which power hungry dimwit he’d offended this time while sitting in the most pathetic shuttlecraft he'd ever seen. Garak also wondered if said ship would make it in one piece through the atmosphere.

Soon, as it caught fire and started to dive madly to the land, he had the answer to that question. He was lucky enough to not be conscious anymore when he touched the surface.

Doctor Julian Bashir could have had a great career, as he couldn't help reminding himself every moment he spent awake. It was easy to do that and think of a thousand other things at once, since he was not quite human, thanks to his parents. And not human was not a good thing to be at the turn of the 20th century. 

Not since the eugenics war started and Augments went from being a mere threat to being a crime.

He drove his little and old car (not his, actually, but the war allowed him to find far too many abandoned vehicles lately) through the empty landscape of what used to be a rural area in England. He had fallen into a pattern of waking up early and roaming the land in search of useful things, then eating whatever he could find before going back to the old cabin he was living in and reading until he fell asleep. If he was lucky, a nearby town would need his aid, either as a doctor or as a helping hand, and he'd exchange that for food and oil. He liked to think he'd forgotten how long he'd been living like that, but the truth was that forgetting wasn’t a luxury he had.

Julian sighed and turned at the sight of smoke. He really hoped it was not a bomb, especially not a nuclear one. That would mean having to move again if it was dangerous enough to irradiate his small cabin and Julian fears he’s running out of places to go. 

What he saw as he got closer however, was definitely not mere smoke. Nor it was from his planet.

That’s how Garak woke up in a stiff bed, feeling dizzy, with a strange young man - Maybe a vulcan? No, no pointy ears - hovering over him and examining his equipment. Well, what remained of his equipment, which seemed to be rather scarce.

Garak thrashed, trying to get away from that odd being, when a terrible pain in his leg stopped him and made him remember where he was and why. The man (at least he seemed to be a male) said something in an unknown language, pointing at his leg. Great. So the translator was broken too. Garak looked at his it, suppressing a shiver. It was completely burned and probably broken. All his body seemed to be more or less in that state - not at all the attractive sight he usually tried to show potential allies- and yet he was not in as much pain as he would have expected. Had that man just dosed him with painkillers hoping the pain would be killed and not him, or did he really know what he was doing?

Julian tried to give him a cautious smile, playing with a few more buttons on the machine. He thought he was starting to make it work. The technology was complex and nothing like the radios they used on earth, but there were enough basic similarities in the wiring. He sat down near his leg and made an extremely graphic gesture for broken, showing him with his hands and something Garak imagined was food how it was broken in several places, and that in at least one the bone had come out.

Garak swallowed tightly, squinting at the man in front of him. Was the damage that bad? He remembered falling through the atmosphere, an aching pain, and then darkness. Probably the ship was rigged to explode, so the surprising thing was how he was not as hurt as he thought he'd be. He was also not wearing his clothes, and wondered idly if the man had removed his burned ones and replaced them with what he had now.

The human made a few adjustments to something and then moved his head appreciatively. He had no idea what it was, but he had obviously got it to work. Never say Julian Bashir couldn’t hack any alien device. He grinned to himself, not quite able to push down the swell of pride in his chest. Khan might be the leader of Australia, but he still hadn’t made contact with an alien. 

He signaled at himself and smiled cautiously, as if he was not sure what would happen. Julian suspected that the being had a similar level of sentience to his own, based on his reactions, but one could never be sure. He kept his tone even as he spoke, kneeling down a bit to meet the alien’s gaze. "Julian. Julian Bashir."

Garak looked at him. It was pretty easy to assume he was trying to say his name, although he had encountered himself in a situation where that kind of signaling meant the talker was angry. He hadn’t been briefed about Terran social behaviors. Certainly his posturing seemed hopeful. "Garak."

He heard the soft him of the translator trying to gather data. Curious. So that creature had managed to repair it, even without knowing what it was? A bip told him the translator battery had not a long time left to live, anyway. Garak was sure he wouldn't be able to find a dilithium source before it drained, so better to make a rational use of it and learn the local language. 

"Cardassian."

"Garak Cardassian?" Julian rolled the word around his mouth a few times, wondering how it truly sounded. He imagined that the language must be beautiful, unique and possibly with sounds he couldn’t even make. He pointed at himself again, not quite able to stop himself from staring at this Garak with a wide smile. It’d been ages since he had anyone talk to. "Julian Bashir!"

Garak touched his ridges, grinning wryly and feeling a touch relieved when the action didn’t make pain shoot through him. It seemed the man had been smart enough to fix the skin on his face first. "Cardassian." He pointed at Julian's soft skin, free of anything to protect it from the harsh elements surrounding them. Strange. "Human."

The young man's eyes shone at that, delighted as he heard the words fill the air. Yes, yes, he understood. "Human! Above?" He pointed at the sky, and his next words were lost to the translator. The poor device was experimental anyway, and without any frame of reference it would probably barely get to a good enough level to help him communicate. Still, it was better than nothing. 

"Above, yes." He gestured with his hands, glancing up at the ceiling and wondering just how how from his ship he was. He suspected, given his own condition, that it was far from salvaging. Still, it couldn’t hurt to go back for parts. "Accident."

Julian repeated the word in his own language and Garak tried to mimic the sounds a couple times until the human smiled, talking fast and excitedly. The new influx of sounds was translated as  _ visit from another planet or experiment? _

"Another planet. Not an experiment." He heard the words transform into the creature’s own with the mechanical voice of the translator, to Julian’s glee, who smiled at him with innocent eyes. He seemed young but also quick-witted, hands moving quickly through the air as though playing an invisible instrument. Everything about him was fast. 

"Cardassia is alien then?" Julian asked as he bounced up and down on his heels. He reminded himself that this situation was serious. Garak was horrifically injured, and Julian was still trying to figure out how to treat him. It was a completely different physiology. 

"Yes, alien. My leg?" He pointed at it, wondering at the fact that it seemed incredibly well treated. He blinked a few times and reminded himself to keep a keen eye on this doctor. He was far more clever than his briefing had allowed for. "You? Doctor?"

Julian nodded and said the word in his language. Or at least he hoped it was the right word. For all he knew, he could very well be saying he was a clown sent to entertain him while he healed. Oh, well, when in Romulus, do as the romulans, Garak thought. Not like he had a lot of options. He could only hope this young man would prove to be an ally and not an enemy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Musings about making Garak speak:
> 
> As some of you may have read in previous stories, Aidaran's (me) mother tongue is not English. What's more, I learned only because my skull is thicker than a brick and I was determined to read Harry Potter IV before anybody could spoil me. That means I learned it in a chaotic way, and only realized a year ago I actually had learned the language.  
> Yet, as anybody learning a second language can assess, some things sound similar but have vastly different meanings. I remember an acquaintance of mine, who got extremely angry at a Brazilian, because he said "obrigado" when she let him pass with his car. Turns out, it sounds very similar to "obligado" and that would mean she had to let him because she was obliged to, while he literally was saying "thank you". So I tried to change some words in Garak-speech to fit that, making them be similar enough you can still understand him, and simultaneously extremely wrong.  
> Another thing that for me is short of a mystical dilemma, is when you have to use in/on/at. I am better now, but still I get so confused I decided to make Garak have the same problem. Curiously enough, in Japanese I was actually really good with particles, learning how to use wa/ga/he/no and all the others right away. Since I feel Japanese use is extremely strict while English... well, a big part of learning English is letting go of logic, I decided to think of Kardassi as a very structured language. Because of that, English confuses Garak with the different particles, or the way pronouns change according to where they are in a sentence.  
> Now, what about the phonemas? I tried to think about what we know about Kardassi, which names we hear in canon: Elim Garak, Dukat, Palandine, Gul, Glinn, Odo'ital, yamok, gelat, Terok Nor, Empok Nor, Ziyal, Mila, kanar. The only occurrences of strong r's I found were in food: Regova eggs, rokassa Juice, with one exception, the Bamarren Institute. So I went with a bit of a headcanon here and speculated that maybe those strong r's were actually caused by the translator, and the language has none, as, again, in Japanese. So actually it was the "Bamaren institute" and it just translated wrongly. I don't think there was a sound I loved more than the soft r at the beginning of words, so different to my language with strong sounds at the beginning. So,I decided to incorporate that to my kardassi, and think of it as a soft sounding language without strong consonants.  
> Oh, and don’t even get me started about how people in English is plural, while in Spanish not only is it singular, but you can make it be plural by adding an s, since our collective nouns are always singular to begin with. I still tend to write "people has" and one second later realize it is wrong.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garak slowly gets the hang of English, although he's not quite sure what to think of the fauna...

As the days passed, little by little Julian learned words in Kardassi, carefully practicing each word until he got a look of approval from Garak. It’s been ages since he had so much to learn, someone to talk to at all. Garak meanwhile picked up of what Julian called ‘English’ some with his good ear for languages, and a little more with the aid of his barely functioning translator. 

The doctor would go outside by day, leaving him with the TV on and come back before the sunset, sometimes with picture books or slightly dated newspapers. Most of the time he came back with food, usually canned or in the form of ration bars. Julian split them between them, carefully trying to mix the ingredients into something appetizing. Garak suspected the human raided abandoned homes and warehouses in search for something to eat.

“Dog.” Julian showed him the drawing of a black beast, with a long tongue falling from his mouth. Garak guessed that book was intended for children, but it's slightly burned edges indicated probably it hadn't served that purpose for a long time. Garak wondered if there were any children left here, hiding among the rubble and ashes. Then he turned his attention back to the beast on his page and tried not to think about such things. 

“Dogh. Food?” Julian took a step back at his words, eyes so wide that it was almost comical. Humans were an interesting species, if Julian was anything to go by, every emotion they had immediately showing on their face. They must all be terrible liars. 

“No! No! Pet.” Garak cocked his head like a bird as Julian looked at him with an outrage the Cardassian thought was completely unjustified. That animal looked meaty, after all. Julian let out a pained sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose. Garak raised an eye ridge curiously. “Friend. Like... you, me.”

“Oh. Not human but... smart. Talk?”

“No, he... woof woof.” Julian tried to imitate the sound and suddenly snorted, laughing at his own antics. “I can’t believe I’m making dog sounds for an alien.” He shook his head, grinning at the absurdity of the situation. Julian kneeled down, running a hand over the picture again and stopping near the head. “Sorry, sorry. That was rude. Dogs don’t have words. Not like you and me. But friends anyway.”

Garak considered his words, tilting his head as he took in the furry creature in front of him. Maybe it was a bit like a riding hound, although clearly this animal was not as ferocious. Garak wondered if he could use one as a transport, should the situation became necessary He flipped the page, shaking his head as he found an even smaller animal. “And this?” 

“Cat! Friend too. Not food. Hunter, small.” He made gestures for Garak to imagine its size, arms held out in front of him as though he was cradling something. He grinned down at his hands, something almost fond coming into his gaze. Maybe there was something special about this cat creature. “Soft.”

Or maybe not. 

“Soft?”

“Soft hair.” He touched Garak’s one, and marveled at how strange the texture was. Not quite like a mammal's one, but somehow fitting his reptilian form. Julian found that he liked it, brushing his hands over a few more strands before he pulled his hand back. “Soft hair.” 

Such a strange concept. A small animal, with hair, hunting for the humans? He could barely imagine an animal that size could bring any prey worthy for his masters. But then again, the dog in the next page didn’t seem useful either, with those small and short legs, big head and flat snout. It looked a bit... moist, in fact. He flipped to the next page and the doctor's eyes shone suddenly.

“Oh! Farm. Food grows here. Corn, tomato, potato, wheat.” Julian pointed at each plant and gave appreciative nods to Garak as he repeated the words. He struggled a bit to differentiate the sounds but eventually got them almost right. Garak felt a surge of pride and ignored the ridiculousness he felt at that. Julian smiled softly as he traced his hand over a few of the crops, gaze suddenly tightening painfully. “There used to be lots around here.”

“But they... burn?” He’d seen ruined land and desolation as he fell to Earth.

“Yes. All burned in the bombings. Some burned by the land soldiers too. And some by scared civilians.” Julian sighed and stood up, not looking at Garak in the eye. Suddenly his limbs felt heavy, the dust in the air tasting a little more bitter than it usually did. “I’m tired, I’ll go to sleep.”

"It's not historically accurate, you know." Julian smiled as his friend watched the TV, enraptured. Garak ignored him, leaning in slightly as he watched the dark haired women do a few flips through the air. Real or not, some human was clearly a first class sportswoman. She would have won many medals on Cardassia. Julian leaned in so they were face to face, a familiar playful smirk dancing on his lips. "She's not a real warrior, and the story is not a real one."

"Shh, don't ruin it." Garak looked at the two women on the screen, the fierce warrior and an innocent blonde girl, and made a gesture for Julian to stop bothering him. Julian rolled his eyes and leaned back against the couch, letting himself be taken in as Xena whispered loving words to Gabrielle. "Learning language."

"Yes, I'm sure that's why you watch it." Garak gasped as the brunette one kicked a warrior and howled. Then he gave a quick nod of approval, as though he were a proud parent of some kind. Julian shook his head fondly, grinning as he let the show wash over him. 

Eventually Julian stood up and went for his equipment, carefully inspecting Garak's wounds. Garak watched him with wide curious eyes, biting his lip and watching as Julian marked down a few things on a notepad Garak was sure he didn’t need. Julian finally turned to him and nodded approvingly, smiling hopefully as he sat back down on the couch. "In two or three days you will walk again."

Once the program was over, Julian brought him a newspaper and read a few headlines slowly, letting Garak follow with his eyes the words, trying to memorize the alien characters. But his voice grew bitter when he got to Khan, reading an opinion column about augmentation and emotional restraint through gritted teeth.

"What? You don't..." He paused a bit, searching for the word. "Not approve he?" His tone was purposely even. He'd heard about him in the news, and noticed how Julian got rigid every time the augments were brought up. Clearly something about this subject was touchy for his young friend. 

He looked at the doctor, who stiffened and slowly clenched his fists a few times. Then he smiled, rolling his shoulders a few times as though trying to shake off the tension still lingering across his frame. Julian spoke slowly to make sure his friend caught all the words, trying to make each individual sound clear. "Of course not. I don't like people who send other people to die. I'd be a bad doctor if I did, wouldn't I?"

Not by Cardassian standards, but then, when in Romulus... he better not alienate his only ally. It seemed human doctors were guided by a different set of principles than Cardassia. “Yes, true. But you... not interested in he... difference? Curious?”

"He's an error. Augments shouldn't exist. Greed and bloodlust seems to be written into their genetic code." There was a bitterness to his voice, and he forgot half the words were probably lost to Garak, even if the translator talked to his ear in a neutral voice, trying to make sense of his heated speech. He hated how all his passion and anger got lost to the little device. Julian felt as though he were never truly connecting with his new friend, all of their emotions and intelligence held at bay by a tiny piece of metal. The progress of science. "Do you have any idea how many people have died because of them already?"

“You said me the number, yes. Human don't kill other human then? Ever?” Garak snorted a bit, not quite able to hide his cynical amusement. Not even Julian could be that naive, and the news had made Garak quite sure most humans were not quite as wide-eyed as his friend here. 

He could hardly imagine them, being the dominant species, hadn't committed lots of genocides too. All he saw in the TV were shows full of violence after all.

"Thorough history and in numerous atrocities, yes. But this... this is a global conquest intent. We hadn't seen anything like this in 50 years. And this time they’re not even human, it’s an entirely new threat that I can’t say we’re handling very well.”

“They are... not human then?” It sounded like they were merely altered humans, rather than something different, but maybe his limited grasp of the language made him assume things that were not correct. Julian stilled at his words, staring down at his hands with a sudden and acute disdain. 

"They are... Far stronger and more intelligent. Faster. Some claim their dna is so modified that they are not the same species anymore.” Julian let out a bitter laugh, as he waited for the device to translate his angry words to that fastidious neutral tone. So perfect and clipped, so unlike the real confused emotions he felt. “Seems we managed to make our own alien species even before getting out to space."

Garak raised an eye ridge, but decided to keep his objections to himself for now. He didn’t know if Julian was someone he could needle or not yet. “And... Only for some peoples? Not all? Why?" Why didn’t they simply do this to everyone once the technology was available? It seemed a bit of a waste, to create only some super humans and then lose control of them.

Julian looked at his hands, shivering a bit. How could he explain this to Garak, who knew nothing of Frankenstein or his monster children? "It's hard, expensive, needs to be done at a young age or in utero, and not everybody survives the treatment. In fact the survival rate is estimated at 5%. I... I've seen the failures."

“Oh? Children lost?”

Julian clenched his fists and took a few deep breaths. He could do this. He didn’t need to reveal anything. Julian started speaking in a tight voice. "There's not a single reason, ever, to have lost children. Even less for science. And certainly not to correct what wasn't broken." Julian sighed and got up, not looking at him. He couldn’t face anymore more judgment right now. Julian didn’t know if it would translate, but he knew Garak was smart enough to start putting the pieces together. But then would Garak know the difference between broken and ill? "Want some tea? I have a bit here I managed to salvage."

“Yes, prease.” 

Julian continued his rant, not caring anymore if it translated or not. Part of him hoped it didn't. "People with money tried it on their children, and people without it risked theirs on the hope to improve them and give them a better future. And then there were those who just felt their children were not enough. I knew a boy who... Nevermind."

“A boy what? I want to... learn.” he was quite sure learn was not the correct word, but it was obvious Julian had stopped talking to him, instead talking mostly to himself, trying to purge some invisible trauma. Julian’s hands were shaking as he paced the small space of the cabin, entire frame tense as though he’d recoil any minute. Garak just hoped he wasn’t in the line of fire when he did. 

"A little boy was a little bit slow and his parents decided to make him go through the process. Just... So cruel and unwanted. He didn't know what was being done to him, he never had the chance to decide."

“And he didn’t... live?”

"He stopped being.” He put the cup on the small improvised night table with so much force some drops spilled over his hand, and he winced at that. “Here's your tea."

Garak raised an eye ridge and mentally tucked that information away for later.  _ Stopped being _ was not the same as dying, unless his translator was really off. “Thank you, dear.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments are love! we're putting so much effort in this story, we'd really like to see what you think of it!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The bombings resume and Julian and Garak flee.

April, 1995.

Julian had been a normal student, or at least as normal as he could manage, getting good grades but making sure not to be the best. He had complained loudly about being tired of studying and mimicked being absorbed in his notes when he was already far ahead of them. Julian used to dream of preparing an advanced experiment, one he hoped would land him a prize he'd proudly receive, giving a speech about hard work.

Then the war started. 

Little by little, the classrooms began to empty, as the brightest or most patriotic students were recruited to develop new ways to break the Hippocratic oath. When Julian was called for the first time, he refused with a tight smile. The third time, he gave them a piece of his mind, voice rising and hands shaking. He was still a bit shocked they hadn’t locked him up then. At the seventh, Julian realized his life soon would be in danger and fled.

He took medical supplies and equipment when he left. He saw it as less stealing than repurposing. It wasn’t as though they were using it to save lives anymore. He made an outpost for himself in the English countryside and started his own lab in a bombarded area, helping people outside of the radar. 

From the looks of it, the people in the region either were hiding their status as he was or were not experimented on at all, and merely caught in the chaos. Julian didn't dare test people against their will, but sometimes he really wondered about a few of the villagers…

"Garak, is it alright if I test your blood? I'm really curious about it."

“Of course, dear. But it may be too... Alien.”

"You can breathe air and you need water and food. I don't think you're so different at all." Julian waved a hand dismissively as the little device translated the words to Garak, who then nodded with a hint of laughter. People generally found Julian annoying and impatient, but so far Garak seemed to find those qualities amusing. Julian hoped that didn’t change. 

"And yet you consider augments... Less people. More alien." 

Garak winced when he felt the needle extracting his blood, but unlike the doctors on Cardassia, there was a gentleness to Julian's touch, a real desire to not hurt his subject Garak had never experienced before. 

All of Julian touches were gentle, unlike the brashness and lack of finesse he sometimes exhibited when talking. And the fact that he had waited for his friend to be able to understand instead of just taking what he needed? That was something a man who had had a molar removed without anaesthetics for the glory of the State could hardly understand.

“That’s different. You haven’t tried to start a war here.”

"I may be invading alien. Like those in TV. Peoples don't like aliens, do they." Julaian scoffed at that, giving Garak a flat look. Garak couldn’t help letting out a low chuckle, because yes, the good doctor had a point. If he was trying to invade them, he was certainly doing a poor job of it, injured and alone with an outcast who lived far from the central action. 

Garak made the same gestures as the ridiculous beings in the black and white movies, and Julian snorted and threw his head back. But soon the darkness returned to his expression, Julian biting his lip so sharply Garak was surprised he didn’t draw blood.

“Augments aren’t human, Garak. They’re too smart, too quick. Even the imperfect ones.”

"Imperfect ones?" Garak raised an eye ridge at that, curiosity filling him. Julian had never mentioned the possibility before. 

“Yes, some survived but didn’t become quite like Khan.”

"Then, better, are they?"

“Well, they’re not as strong or as charming.” Julian looked to the side, pulling at the edge of his frayed sweater sleeves. Yes, certainly nowhere near as charming. He regretted even starting they discussion.

"Sso, human." His s’s were still sibilant, reminding Julian of a snake. In a way Garak was one, a big, oversized lizard that seemed just one step from hissing at any threat.

Julian closed his eyes, biting back a bitter laugh. If only they were. “Well, no. They’re... in between.”

Garak shook his head slowly, swallowing down the many questions on the tip of his tongue. Clearly, this doctor had a hard past he was not yet ready to disclose. "So, how is me blood?" He wondered what kind of civilization humans were, that  _ blood _ had been one of the first words he learned watching TV, than it was such an easy to pronounce one.

“It’s a bit different from human or augment blood, but not that...  _ alien _ .” He smiled a bit smugly as he finished examining Garak’s cellular structure, not bothering to pretend to take notes for once. 

"You tested augment blood? How is it?"

Suddenly a noise outside made them both jump. A thunder that made the whole cottage tremble. The doctor sighed as he suddenly moved across the room with a speed Garak wouldn’t have thought he was capable of, a mix of fear and resignation in his face. 

"We'll have to get to the basement. The bombings started again. I'm not sure if there's anything left to destroy anymore, yet they keep doing it." Julian grabbed his shoulders to help him get up, expression grimmer than Garak had seen it before. He was sure this wasn’t the first time Julian had waited a bombing out. Garak wasn’t naive enough to hope it would be the last. 

He glanced down at his leg, not perfect but certainly mobile, even if he's only been walking short distances in the last couple weeks. So superior to the level of scientific advancement he had been led to believe Earth had. Fascinating. Not even a casting needed, unlike what he saw on TV all the time. “Your medicine is fasst.”

Julian didn't look at him as he opened a trap door in the floor, hidden by an old and musty rug. He grabbed a pair of lights and put their meager possessions in a backpack. He was silent the entire time, though Garak could see his eyes flashing with ideas. 

"I wanted to go to the research branch when I was studying. Even if I shouted to my supervisor's face and slammed the door, I certainly took the knowledge with me."

Garak chuckled, grabbing a stick to aid his walking as Julian opened a small door on the floor. “Isssues with authority? That is why you don’t like the Khan?”

"Khan, not  _ the _ Khan", Julian corrected softly, a hint of a smile at the corner of his lips. It didn’t reach anywhere near his eyes though. "I don't like people with authority using it to force others or to do what's not right. I won't use my knowledge to help kill people. Careful now, I'm sorry, but we'll have to go down and stay there until the bombing stops."

“Are bombings from the humans or the augments?” 

Julian shrugged, surprised to find that he didn’t care one way or the other. He supposed everyone was his enemy now. "I don't know anymore. I'll have to see how to move you when I change places."

“You move house to house?”

"Yes, I'm not... let's say my superiors were not too pleased when I decided to tell them where they could shove their opinions."

"Shove? You put opinions in places?"

"Oh, sorry, uhm... That was a very rude expression, saying they could get them... I mean, it's a way of saying... It refers to the anatomical part that..." Julian stuttered, as he helped him go down the stairs. Finally he shook his head, feeling defeated by his own words. English really was a terrible language sometimes. "I didn't like what they wanted from me." The floor trembled, and Julian hurried to steady Garak so his leg wouldn't hit anything. "I don't want any more blood in my hands."

They descended in silence, listening to the deafening sound of the ground being flattened out.

Julian sighed as they rested a bit, listening to determine if the bombings were stopping. "I think we have to find a way to move you around. I could cover you from head to toes and make sure that tail is not visible. If somebody asks about your hands, I'll say you're badly ill."

“I can say it was... Radiation?” Certainly old movies talked about radiation as a thing that could give people superpowers or horrible diseases. Surely people would believe him if he used that excuse. Humans seemed to believe all kinds of strange things, not questioning anyone half as much they should. Truly a naive people. 

"So, mister dragon, did your scales grow because your planet was radioactive?" Julian smiled warmly at him, thankful for the distraction as he leaned on the wall.

“No, no, all of we have them. Sadly is a bit far from here, so I can't... show you.”

"And they sent you here alone, and with faulty equipment? You must have crossed the wrong people too, then."

“I have issues with the actual authorities as well.”

"So, two misfits together in the middle of a war. You certainly chose the best era to come to Earth."

Julian swung his arms at the musty tunnel, the sound of bombs slowing but not entirely stopping as the earth shook above them. 

“Or maybe most exciting one.” He grabbed the doctor's arm as the ground shook again, and then there was silence for several minutes. They finished descending and Julian dropped his backpack on the floor.

"I could afford a bit less excitement, I think." The human sighed as he stretched his arms out. "I think the bombing stopped. Wait here, I'll go assess the damage and then back here to rest a bit."

Garak sat until Julian left, and then rose to scope out his surroundings.

He soon found a tunnel entrance, probably connecting with the town, and certainly very old looking, but clear and clean. Obviously Julian had been using it to move around, so probably there was another entrance besides the one they had just used, since he had not seen him go through the floor before. He made a note of the size and shape, just in case. Then he went to check out what Julian kept downstairs. Maybe he could put on a pot of tea for them while he tried to figure out if this was his ticket home.

He found all kinds of tech that certainly didn't quite match with what he'd been briefed about and had already seen. Most of it seemed to be medical equipment, but several not even he could make out what they were.

Garak carefully studied them and made notes in his mind for when the doctor returned. Unless his intel was terribly wrong, he suspected Julian Bashir was a bit more than human.

"I see you didn't waste time exploring." Julian was behind him, not having made a single noise while approaching. Yes, certainly he was not normal, although it was obvious he was not ready to discuss it.

“I like knowing my, my..."

"Surroundings?" Julian offered with a bright smile, hoping he was at least close.

"Yes, suroundings. And I wanted to make tea for... we.” Certainly he felt he’d never get the hang of pronouncing the r’s as Julian did. That sound seemed to make his tongue hurt with the vibration.

"Us, not we. Why, that's so nice of you. But don't get too comfortable, most of the surface has been leveled so we'll have to move through the tunnel or soon we'll starve, I can't go get us food anymore. We don't even have a roof anymore." He patiently waited for the translator. He was pretty sure at this point he had grasped most of Garak's language, but was it safe to make that known? Or would it raise too many suspicions? He felt sorry for his friend, making him work hard to understand English when he had picked most of Kardassi already. "You can put your weight on me, we'll only carry my equipment."

“How kind of you.” Garak smiled at him and tested how his leg did with the movement. Better, but still not quite perfect.

"Of course, I'm always kind."

“How lucky for me then.”

Julian glanced at him with and then back to the front. Was the alien flirting with him? "Yes, you certainly were lucky to find such a charming medical student, my dear alien. Here, turn right."

"Well, yes, I could have landed with soldiers.”

Julian paled at that, cracking his knuckles a few times. There was a surprising viciousness to his voice when he spoke this time. "Certainly you wouldn't like it there. I know what they do."

“Soldiers always do, seems.”

"Ours are pretty fond of opening people up to see their insides. I couldn't... I refused to be part of that."

Finally they arrived at a dark and moist room, with stairs, some cabinets and old and moldy blankets laying on the floor. "Here's hideout number two, my dear dragon. We'll rest here for the night, and tomorrow I'll go help people and find some food. And maybe find a nicer place for us."

“Don't worry, I do well with... Hard situations.”

"What kind of hardship? I think I already gave you quite a lot of information about my past." He barely knew anything about him, and doubted it was only because of the language barrier. That lizard man certainly was hiding something from his past as well. He was too smart, too fast, and smiled a bit too wide.

“Well, I was a tailor.” He was proud of being able to say that word. Who imagined movies could be so educational? 

Julian glanced up at him, smiling fully this time. "I never imagined tailors would be needed in a space society."

“People still like to look best, on space. I was at a... research mission when I crashed here.”

"Researching fabrics, I imagine." He gave him a lopsided grin. It was such an obvious fabrication he couldn't help being drawn to Garak. His friends always said he had dangerous tastes. 

“Yes, that. You meet interesting peoples, dresssing them.”

"How are they? How's space?"

“Oh, some are quite boring, others interesting.” Garak smiled a bit, gaze playful as he seemed to go over different people he had met over the years. “Big and crowded, space. Full of peoples.”

"I somehow imagined it would be big enough for everybody, space. Not crowded, but... lonely.”

“It is both. Crowded and lonely.”

“Tell me more about them, about the people in space." Julian yawned and made himself a ball on the floor, between old blankets.

Garak leaned back against the wall, shoulders relaxing a hair. He felt oddly safe with Julian. “There’s the Romulans. Brilliant but... mean. They like war. Nice clothing.”

"How do they look?" Julian crawled closer to Garak without thinking about it, wondering how their current accommodations suited him. Julian didn’t know a lot about his reaction to different temperatures or moisture levels. 

“They look like you, but ears pointed and... Orange skin, hair over eyes. More hard.”

"What do you mean, hard?"

“Your skin is soft. I can hurt you with my nail.” He softly touched his cheek, trailing his nail across it, but not really scratching.

"Oh, I think I'm tougher than I look." He smiled at him, and wondered when was the last time he had so many times in a row before the arrival of this man some weeks ago. Times had been so bleak these last years... Julian got a bit closer, noticing Garak was shivering. "I forgot, you're cold blooded. Use this."

“Thank you, dear doctor.” Garak wrapped the blanket around himself, shivering a little.

"Is there anything else I can do to help you?"

“More blankets?” The surface was hot enough to make water come out of Julian’s skin, who had assured him it was perfectly normal for his species, but this place was cold and moist. He could feel his scales retracting.

"Only these. This place is not my favorite one but I don't dare to go to the surface. Is this ok...?" Julian got closer, putting the blanket he was using over Garak's shoulders as well as he leaned over him.

Garak fought the urge to flinch at the doctor's touch. Old habits die hard, and he was used to be hurt by anyone getting close to his space. One thing was a medical procedure, but this... This was intimacy.

Julian raised an eyebrow at that, but didn’t say anything. He didn’t feel it was his place, even if the mysterious alien was under his protection, so he softly got up. “I’ll make us some tea.”

"You have a... a...?" Garak made frustrated mimics. He still lacked so many words.

“Kettle?" He took one out from a half ruined cabinet.

"Kee-ttle. Yes. Kettle."

"I keep a kettle in all my hideaways. I suppose it’s the English in me.”

"English." Garak tried to remember if he had heard that word before. 

“Ah, it’s where I’m from originally.” Julian explained as he started brewing. He watched the steam slowly rise and wondered if he had anything to make a hot water bottle with. “I came here for medical school and then the war broke out.”

"You were a good student, right?" A far too good one, from the looks of it.

“Well, I was considered a star student, though I'm sure you have more advanced equipment and science on Cardassia.”

"I'll measure your technology if I get a... Tailor machine." He took the cup, grateful for the heat.

"Sewing machine. Sewing."

"Sewing... Sew? Tailors... Sew?"

“Yes, exactly. I’ll see if I can find one when I’m on my rounds." Julian laughed and once they finished their tea, he stretched out on the ground, curling back against Garak's side. “Sleep well, my alien friend.”

Garak turned to get closer, and Julian felt the scaly tail touch his leg softly for a second.

Julian blinked but swallowed down any sounds. The tail felt nice, even if Garak shivered slightly. “I’m sorry you crashed here and not somewhere warmer. We do have some hotter parts of the world, but this isn’t one of them.”

"Are those parts safe?"

“Some of them, others are just as dangerous.”

"We can go there, then." Garak was almost asleep. Giving his back to a stranger. On a strange planet. With his tail grabbing one of his ankles.

“We could, it’s not so far of a journey and this area is likely to be evacuated soon.” Julian murmured as he leaned against Garak’s back. It had been a long time since he shared space with anyone this close, outside of medical procedures.

He heard the breathing of the reptile get slower and more regular, and soon he followed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aidaran is having an extremely bad day, so nice comments would be greatly appreciated! A tissue too, but probably most of you are very far from her so she'll have to find one by herself.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garak and Julian discover that the surface is not safe for them anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The wonderful AgrippaSpoleto drew a raiding kettles Julian and it's so cute! You've no idea how much you've brighten our day with it, so we hope this chapter will make you happy!
> 
> Go see her drawing, it's amazing! 
> 
> https://agrippaspoleto.tumblr.com/post/190086986135/i-keep-a-kettle-in-all-my-hideaways-i-suppose

Julian woke up the next morning to find the reptile already awake, carefully scouting the room. Julian smirked a little to himself covering it with his right hand as he watched Garak work. Tailor his ass. 

"How's your leg?" He rubbed his eyes, sitting and nodding when he was handed a cup of tea. He took a few quick sips, savoring the warmth and feeling of domesticity. It had been a long time since anywhere had felt like home. 

“ Quite good actually.” Garak assured him as he took a sip of his own tea. Garak stretched his legs out as though to prove his point, giving the doctor a look of pride. Julian couldn’t help preening a bit, brushing one hand over his. 

They ate in silence, trying to hear if outside was there any noise. It was eerily silent, not even birds. Garak swallowed tightly at that, lips pursed. He knew enough about war zones to know what a bad sign that was. He suspected they would have to move sooner rather than later. 

Julian finished his breakfast and stood up. He grabbed a few pieces of equipment from his makeshift desk, shaking his head in something akin to despair. They both doubted he would need them. "I'll be back in a few hours. If you're lucky you may catch something interesting on TV."

"You have one here?"

"Yes, I... I was already preparing to move when you fell from the sky."

Julian glanced around the room, running a hand through his hair and wondering how many days they could stay here. He didn’t have too many more places left to go. Julian gave him a small squeeze in his shoulder and left. Garak sighed and turned the TV on, hoping that it could provide some more information about Earth. Clearly Cardassia’s own research efforts had been limited. 

"... And in other news, the Brazilian Regency has just merged with Paraguay's Coalition, and now they are threatening the surrounding countries to either join the Regent Buraos, or face war... Montevideo was bombarded as a warning for those who oppose him, and the Red Cross has been unable to reach the city center yet..."

Garak watched, again curious about the number of countries and languages all on this one dusty planet. Certainly different from most other places in the Alpha Quadrant. 

“Russia continues to barricade itself from visitors in an attempt to stave off...”

It seemed the kind of planet that was just waiting to be blown into nothingness. Too many small, petty conflicts. No surprise Julian preferred to watch movies and cartoons instead of news. Nobody wanted to witness how their home is blown to oblivion from the inside.

"... In other news, Hawaii declared they are, from now on, part of the coalition that's forming on the Pacific front, under Khan Noonien Singh's command. His troops seem to be stationed there to stay..."

So many water and islands. Were it not for the troops, Garak would have thought of that place as a paradise, with everything he loved of Cardassia and everything he wanted her to have, and he couldn't help wishing they could go there, to the sun. But something told him Julian would rather die than go with the augments.

“Meanwhile, several of Singh’s air forces are moving towards California. They believe they will be able to form an alliance with the country-state, given its historical precedence in allowing augments to live freely...”

Those planes seemed so archaic, and yet able to cause so much destruction. And to think the galaxy feared the Klingon. Death raining from above, to towns that looked like they were not prepared to handle airborne attacks, that was Garak's idea of terror.

"...Mexico and Canada have already said they refuse to form an alliance with West North America, so it's possible Mexico will join Venezuela and the Central America coalition, under the augment Maria Canaria, who refuses to bend to Singh. Meanwhile, on the northern front...” 

Garak turned away from the television, concentrating on his universal translator instead. Maybe he could improvise a battery. His estimation was that in around a fortnight it'd be completely dead. He didn’t know enough English yet for that. 

"And now, the musical segment! The Backstreet Boys are back with a new single!"

Garak felt something was being pushed inside and stomped over in his ears at the sudden noise in the TV. He groaned in a low voice and glanced at the offending sound, watching as a group of boys moved back and forth in a strange dance. This... this, what was this? It couldn’t truly be music.

Next came a girl singing something about a Barbie, whatever that monstrosity was.

Garak made a pitiful noise and switched the channel. Was this really entertaining? Not even in his worst interrogations had he resorted to this sort of sensory onslaught. It was cruel. 

Now there were several well dressed humans around Julian’s age arguing about something inane, while lounging around a pool. Even after almost a month on Earth, he still found it hard to get used to the amount of garbage that was transmitted on TV.

He changed again, and this time people were using long robes and reciting something. It was a bit slow, but interesting enough. He watched with interest as they all sang a different kind of song, low and solemn. This reminded him more of home, even if his people had not been religious for a long time.

They had books and were saying something about burning in hell. Garak wondered if it was a metaphor or not, as some of them seemed ready to start the burning, perhaps to help their deity with their job.

“Not kind, this humans’ gods.” He switched the channel again, this time finding what appeared to be a panel of doctors.

"... And yes, we suspect many augments are hiding in cities and towns, passing as normal humans. Whether it is because they are defecters or sleeper agents, we don't know..."

“But we are attempting to create a guideline for spotting augments within your own communities.”

"Isn't that segregation? This century has seen too many times where do those guidelines take us." A woman interjected, worried look on her face.

“We wouldn’t segregate them from society, we would simply ensure they weren’t sleeper agents. After that, they could return to their lives.”

“Brad, you can’t be that naive. People never 'return to their lives', and you know it.”

"It's not naivete. It's protecting  _ our _ people from potential augment terrorists."

“They won’t let them go home. Tensions are too high now and -“

“Think of the children! Both human and augmented ones!” the man slapped the table with his hand, making the woman recoil.

An older woman tried to calm then down, speaking in a low voice. "The children could be relocated with human families. Certainly they should benefit from a normal education."

“We can’t take children from their parents!” the first woman was pale, pupils dilated.

"Even if those parents are murderers, Eliza?" Brad gave her the nastiest smile, and Garak decided he didn't like him. Cardassians suddenly seemed the most welcoming civilization, in comparison to this man.

“That’s a different situation, and even then, mothers have raised their children in jail in several countries through the ages. But we can’t assume all augments are criminals either.”

"Not, but far too many are." The older woman lined up with Brad on that.

"Enjoying the TV, Garak? You are on a beautiful planet, as you can see." Julian was standing on the stairs, pained expression on his face. His hands trembled slightly. "There was nothing outside. Nothing at all. I couldn't even procure food or water. We must move."

“Right, right. I'll get the... clock, was it? Or cloak?” Garak caught the sad expression on his face, the way Julian’s lips thinned. He was staring at the tv, expression defeated as though he had this all before. “You don’t think the augments are all murderers, no?”

"I don't believe any race, etnic group or nationality could be. Far too many people have died for generalizations like that."

“You’re a wisser person that the ones in your TV. Where will we go? Hell? People was singing about it.” He offered the doctor a lop-sided smile. Still he couldn’t help raising an eye ridge at the thought, amused by the entire idea of an afterlife of suffering. As though humans didn’t do a good enough job of creating suffering for themselves on Earth. 

"We are in it. Or more like, below it. You'll see it for yourself." Julian sat on the stairs, grabbing his head. He slowly ran his hands through his hair, closing his eyes and letting out a sound halfway between a groan and a whimper. "They leveled everything, only because there was a rumor there were augments here. And then they are the ones scared? There were villages here!"

Garak shook his head, carefully wrapping his neck and up toward his face with cloth. He stopped long enough to meet the doctor’s gaze, reaching a hand out toward the other man. “Fear make people do terrible things. I know that well.”

"You're not here exploring, are you? Did you cross the wrong people as well?"

Now that was an understatement. "Maybe.”

"Why, you sewed pants a bit too short?"

“Sometimes people is so... picky about the fit.” He gave an exaggerated sigh, pressing one hand across his chest. People really could be so touchy about being told they were wrong. 

"Picky enough to send you to this beautiful place, I imagine." Julian finally looked up at Garak, eyes red and face dusty. He sobbed slightly, his voice hoarse. Garak didn’t think it was the first time the doctor had cried today. Julian cleaned his eyes with the back of his hand. "I'm not sure what could be so bad to be condemned to what is outside this basement. Come on, let's take all the stuff I have here and move. There's no one left to be my patient outside anymore, so I'll find us a transport and we'll go to another place."

Garak stood up, finished with his mask. He wondered how long they could truly carry on like this before someone got suspicious.

Garak didn't have to worry, soon discovered, since Julian was right about the desolation. They walked long until they were far from the village enough to find an old car mostly intact. Julian smiled sadly at him, waving one hand in front of him. "Want to see some magic? I can turn this in without keys."

“Doctor and engineer, amazing!” 

"It's quite simple, actually. You just take out some wires and connect them. I had to learn certain things when I went under the radar." Julian took out his tools from his backpack and carefully worked on the car, until the engine started to roar. Julian grinned brightly and opened the passenger door, following it with an exaggerated bow. “For you, Mister Garak.”

"Why, so kind of you. You have to teach me drive."

“Maybe I will, depending on how long we’re on the road.”

"Do you know where you're going, or just... wandering?" Garak winced when he saw the doctor’s expression grow dim, some of the light going out of his eyes again. 

“Wandering, but I remember which camps weren’t demolished last time I left.”

They drove for days across abandoned towns, sometimes stopping to raid houses and malls in search of food and tools, or gas stations to fuel the car, only to get back to the road and go to the next one. Each one was somehow more empty feeling than the last. 

"Charming." Garak looked out as he drove, as depressing after depressing landscape came into view. Julian looked out past him, a sense of fondness coming into his gaze even as he let out a low sigh. 

“It was, once. I fear the bombings have taken something away from the landscape."

Garak stood silently, watching Julian's face as he looked through the destruction. He was far too haunted for one who seemed so young, so enthusiastic when at his best. 

"I still keep looking out in the hopes of finding people who needs a doctor, even if I know probably there aren't anymore."

Julian kept his eyes on the road, and they eventually turned left, entering a small site with not enough houses to even be called a town, the site looking more like an abandoned village than the places they had seen before. There were people there still, with looks of terror on their faces. "I know these people, they will give us shelter and food in exchange for me helping them."

Garak wrapped his face up with Julian’s bandages, waiting until the sounds outside became clearer. “Will we stay here?”

"Three-four days top. I don't want to stay long anywhere."

“Why?”

Julian looked away from him, voice thin. "Let's say the offer to help in the battlefield was not optional."

Julian parked the car and was greeted in a low voice by an old woman. He gestured at the car and when she nodded, he opened Garak's door. "I'll help fix their radio and treat some infections. They'll give you food while I work."

“Thank you, that is most kind.” Garak told the woman with a very thick accent as he followed her inside a cottage and sat next on a few chairs sitting on a deck. Garak imagined it used to be quite a lovely image, when everyone didn’t look so suspicious. She looked darkly at him but brought him bread and meat and a strange white-yellow spread.

One child ran to his side, looking at him with eyes like plates. "Why are your hands like that?"

“Radiation. Go careful around the bombs.”

The girl laughed and showed him a doll, spinning around a few times. "Your r's are so weird!" Yes, Garak was conscious he just couldn't get the handle of the strong sound at the start of words. "This is Katy. Want to say hello to her?"

“Hello, Katy. How are you doing?”

"She's an augment! She wants to conquer the world." The girl smiled, and Garak saw she was missing some teeth. Was that normal for humans her size?

Garak raised an eye ridge beneath his bandages. The doll was small and had bright red hair, a few freckles earring across her face. “I see. So is she your friend?”

"Yes! She'll make me queen when she conquers England!"

“Ah, I see. What a wise augment.”

"Yes! She will stop the bombing and the fighting so nobody else has to die!" The little girl cried as she held her doll up, eyes bright and hopeful. 

"Ellie! Stop bothering the good man."

“She is not bothering me.” Garak answered softly at her. Information always was easier to obtain around kids. Adults tended to treat them like a bit more than pets, which made them not care about them overhearing. Just because they seemed absorbed in their toys, it didn't mean they were not memorizing everything.

The mother huffed and walked away. Ellie smiled brightly and sat on his lap without asking. "Grownups don't like my stories."

“Why not?"

"They don't like my doll. They say augments are bad. But the doctor is not bad! I like him. Do you like him too?"

“I like him quite a lot. He is friend.” Garak smiled, mind filling with information he had already suspected.

"People don't trust him a lot here but they are all sick so they let him come, but he's kind. He fixed my doll and showed me his teddy bear." She kept playing with her doll. “Some soldier people came looking for him the other day. They had photos and said his blood and his...d-a-n", she looked proud at knowing those letters, "were not human and they had proof in their labs."

Garak grew pale at that, feeling his stomach drop. So much for the vacation. They needed to go now.

“I see. How fascinating. I need to find the good doctor. I want to see his bear.” Garak ran. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and Kudos make us happy, so not just feel free to comment, please, just comment! 
> 
> It took us only one whole year to get the hang of making publishing schedules, so we deserve a bit of love, hahaha.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Julian is finally forced to accept there's no place for him with the humans. Where to go then?

Julian felt like his entire body had gone numb when Garak finally caught up to him and explained what he had heard. No. No. 

“No, no, Garak, you’re being ridiculous. You’ve only been on Earth for a few weeks, you don’t know how our children make things up.” Julian chided him in a strained voice, hands shaking as he tried to come up with some way Garak was wrong. 

"I know when a child is making up, and when they are repeating what they hear. We have to go away."

Julian shook his head vehemently, gaze growing more and more panicked. This couldn’t be happening. He had been so careful. “You know when Cardassian children are. They wouldn’t betray me, I know these people.”

"Doctor, please. Look, there are military... Soldiers, in this town and we are with no arms."

“I am keeping my eyes open, but you’re going to have to trust me too, Garak. I know this world.” Julian reminded himself at the same time he reminded Garak. His new friend was suspicious to a fault and — 

"And I know peoples. They are all the same, with or not with scales."

Julian glanced around the people nearby, catching a few suspicious glances. That wasn’t unusual. He knew they wondered if he was... one of them, but he'd never really given anything for them to confirm their fears. He always made sure to look like he was putting in a great effort when fixing things.

He also saw new people, but then again, people came and went all the time lately. There were far too many refugees. A woman got closer to a man and whispered something, looking at Julian discreetly. The man nodded and entered a house, while the woman hurried away.

Maybe there was a basis for Garak's paranoia.

“I don’t recognize everyone.” Julian admitted to Garak, leaning in close so only he could hear. He swallowed a bit, feeling his stomach start to sink. “Why would they be after me?”

"I think you know why. And the peoples here knows, they don't think you are like other humans." Garak looked around carefully, expression never changing from the pleasant one he wore when he wanted to get answers. People were watching them. He took Julian's hand and leaned closer, squeezing his hand lightly. "We need weapons and run to stay alive, Julian."

Julian swallowed and nodded, glancing at Garak thoughtfully. “I have a plan to go away. It depends on how fast you can move though and we’ll need to be by the warehouse first.”

"I'm more fast than I look. And also hard, if need to hit me." Garak gave a wan smile at the wide eyed horror in Julian’s eyes. He really could be adorably naive sometimes. And what were a few punches or shots between friends?

“Perfect. Meet me there in 3 minute and 22 seconds.”

Garak nodded. They both knew both had already spotted it far before conflict emerged. Doctor Bashir was certainly a fitting companion for a hostile world, even if he was not yet aware of that.

Three minutes later Garak stood next to the rendezvous point, by a small truck Julian said would get them to the shipyards. He checked the contents quickly, glancing towards Julian every so often. 

“There were some firearms inside. I grabbed them. Do you think you can learn how to use them?” He handled one to his scaly companion. Julian looked down at his own gun, biting his luck and unsure if he should feel lucky or horrified that he did. 

“Arms are arms everywhere. Not look that hard.” He checked its weight, and pointed a bit to test it.

"If we are fast, maybe we can go unnoticed, so no need to use them." Julian smiled hopefully, even though he knew the odds of that exactly. Sometimes he really did hate his brain. "I ditched our car and put all our things here."

They were not fast enough.

Julian drove while Garak peered out the window, trying to keep track of the people chasing them. He shot out several tires in a row. “That will slow them down?”

"I hope!" Julian voice is strained, and Garak noticed his arm was bleeding.

They managed to lose them, but Julian insisted on driving for nearly an hour before he finally pulled over to inspect his own arm. “When - how did you figure out I’m not...”

"It was bit obvious. And the kid told me. Let me cure you. Can you guide me? I can drive... I think."

Julian pursed his lips because he wasn’t sure how it would be obvious, but he would ask more about that later. First things first, he needed to stop bleeding. “Here, you need to use these pressure pads to stop the bleeding.”

"Very well. You have something for the pain?"

“Yes, yes. The blue pills in the right container. My own recipe.”

"I think I have to sew or, or use... Heat. Heated knife, yes?" Garak looked at him in the hopes Julian understood he was talking about cauterizing. His friend nodded quickly, not looking the least bit surprised. "You're the doctor, choose?"

“You’re a tailor right? Sew if you don’t mind.”

"Very well. Will you be able to... To...?"

"To endure the pain?"

"Yes, yes, en-dure, it or you want something to bite?" Julian too was unused to being treated kindly, so between that and the pain he wanted to scream.

“Oh. I - here, I’ll bite this.” Julian stuck a rag in his mouth and laid down, closing his eyes tightly. Tears gathered in the corner, but soon it was over. He had been treated several times, had in fact tried things on himself, and certainly, few times he'd felt such a masterful hand. He glanced down and took the stitches in. “This isn’t the first time you’ve sewn up a wound.”

"Arm, pants... Similar. You have something to clean the wound?"

“Antiseptic is in the white bottle.” Julian swallowed tightly and then grinned. He heard the little device translate, and Garak rushed to grab the bottle once the words sank in. “Tinker, tailor, Soldier, spy?”

"A man of multiple talents, me."

He softly wrapped Julian's arm with a bandage, making sure it was not too tight.

“I thought as much. Seems we’re both men with secrets.” Julian stuttered a bit, voice growing soft as he glanced down at his arm. “Thank you, Garak.”

"You fixed my leg, now I fix your arm. You sleep, I understand drive."

“Let’s go. We need to get to the shipyard and then find a ship willing to carry... stowaways.”

Julian woke up by the sea, car parked in the sand. He stared out at the waves, feeling his stomach twist a bit. How had he — was he dead? He felt panic rise in his chest until a hand suddenly came to lie over his, scales almost glittering in the sunlight. Garak. 

"You had temperature. You slept and said weird things for 3 days. I had to ask people how to treat you. Gave them our fruits for medicine. One asked if I was Greek, I said yes. What is Greek?"

Julian widened his eyes, mouth opening and closing a few times. He hadn’t been sick since he was a child. Apparently even augmented systems could fail. For once he didn’t get any relief from that idea. “Did the wound get infected?”

"I suppose. Lot of colors in that arm, and you humans don't grow colors, do you. I changed your bandages and put cold cloths in your face to make temperature go down."

“Thank you, Garak. I’m glad we’re alive. I suppose we will have to see how to get out of the islands now." He sighed in a low voice, testing his arm to see if he had full motion. "Finding the papers will be difficult. Not many people want to help... people like me. And you can't get a photo, of course.”

"They think you are to run to the continent? They knew you are no human." Garak raised an eye ridge, wondering if Julian realized just how cornered he was. 

"They have no way of knowing. The experiments... They were not registered."

Julian felt more worried than before. They would look for him in the continent if they knew. If they knew, his name could be flashing on TV screens at any moment, along with his mysteriously bandaged friend.

"Don't you give blood for... State register?"

"But that wouldn't... I don't... I changed the samples when... I did..." His ears rang as his throat grew dry. 

Damnit.

Blood. They surely did. Either they found the samples he couldn't find and destroy at campus, or they realized that the blood he’d submitted couldn't possibly be his. He'd been careful, chosen a subject that had his same blood type, but... If he was known and being outed on that level then... nowhere here was safe. Not anymore. 

“We need to go to Botany Bay.”

"What's that?"

"Khan's residence. It's rumoured he has ships." Julian swallowed tightly, gaze suddenly far away. "They won. I won't be able to hide forever."

Garak took his hand again, as though to hold him in place. His voice was careful. “It’s would be safe there for you?”

“Hard to say. Khan isn’t what you’d call trustworthy. The other augments vary, but a lot of them believe in his dreams of a better future for them, no matter the cost.” Julian couldn’t stop the bitterness that slid down his throat, the touch of envy mixed with horror. 

"And you? You don't believe in them."

“I don’t believe in his ideals. I think there can be a future for humans and augments together, if they would only accept each other. And I can’t say that I see augments as the next step up in human evolution like they claim.”

He looked at the sea. He had never wanted to leave college, to hide. To run from the people he would gladly save, given the chance. He wanted to build a life for himself in the world he had known, but it seemed the world didn’t know him. 

"But humans are quite wild, shooting you. Not even interogation." He struggled with the double r, trying and failing to pronounce it.

If Julian tried, he could almost imagine neither of those ships in the distance had weapons built in. But his eyes were far too good, and he could see the little torrets, the guns casually pointing at the coast. He wondered if they'd even make it out alive.

“Evolution happens in nature, not in laboratories with borrowed embryos and children.”

"Were you that?"

“I was six when my parents decided they wanted a better model.” Julian kept his voice cool and controlled, trying to keep the hurt from being obvious. 

"And what happen to them?" Garak asked, voice even as he took in the haunted look in Julian’s eyes. 

“They had the brilliant child they wanted. But then I kept getting too brilliant and eventually they told me. I haven’t seen them in three years. Not since the war started.”

They stood there, in silence. Finally Garak talked again. "So, seem we are lone in the world, yes?"

“We are, I suppose. I’m sorry you crashed into the backyard of someone with so few options.” He waited as the little voice in Garak's ear translated his words. It sounded... Dimmer, slower. It was obvious his friend would soon be without aid.

"I could has landed in a soldiers house. Sure they have nice beds and lot of food."

Yes, Garak's degrading grammar was undoubtedly a sign of him being less and less aided by his device. No wonder people had mistaken him for a foreigner. He leaned on him, putting his head on his shoulder. This time Garak didn't even flinch, and Julian wondered why the lizard was even trusting him anymore.

“Yes, yes, that would have been quite nice for you. And who knows, the right general might have been smart enough to see just how smart you are.”

"Give me warm room with view, yes."

“Yes, yes. Lots of blankets and fine silk dressing gowns. Really I’ve just been holding you back.”

"Maybe we try run to the first soldiers we see. They have better food for both us." Garak murmured as his stomach growled, reminding them both how little they had eaten since they had to abandon his tunnels. Even before, Julian hadn’t had much in the way of food. 

“Oh, yes. And I could get back to my work as a doctor for them.”

Garak scoffed, gently touching his friend's hair. "So, to reality and to get those papers?"

“No, no, we can skip that part. There’s no use. We need to find someone who can get us on a ship to Australia, as fugitives.”

"You wait here. I find us the information. Say I speak ... Greek, if people says something." Garak disappeared before Julian could stop him. He just hoped Garak didn’t run into someone who did speak Greek. Their lies needed to be consistent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos are love! if we have to beg for them as smelly golden retrievers asking for a bit of chicken... be sure we will. It's not like we have dignity or anything like that.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally they decide to leave... and they meet someone new.

Julian sat on the hood of the truck, sliding his hands through his hair and tugging a few curls. He was surprised it hadn’t started to come out in his hands, with how long he’d been at it. 

He didn’t know what to think. This was the life he had been trying to avoid for years.

He didn't want to be part of Khan's plans, or the Coalition plans, or the Union plans, or whatever any of the factions called each other that day. Soon another one would just defeat and absorb them anyway, only to continue the bloody cycle... he just wanted to be where people needed to be healed, in the frontier, bringing better care for them.

Now he couldn’t avoid going to where Khan was. Still maybe he would stay a doctor, healing wounded soldiers. The fact that they were on the other side didn’t make a difference to him. He wanted to help people who needed it, and a wound was a wound, blood was blood, even if his own had probably betrayed him.

Garak came strolling back then, smiling a bit like a shark. "Found us ride that don't ask questions. We work for our travel, but we go with them. They go at night, we eat and rest here."

“Good, good. And they’re going to?” Julian asked as he leaned back, suddenly exhausted in spite of everything. He felt a bubble burst in his chest, not quite relieved not closer to it than he had been in a long time. They could rest on a boat, if nothing else. 

"South Africa. I hope you be able to understand the language?"

“Yes, yes. They speak English there and I know several other languages besides.”

Garak winced a not, shaking his head as he held up the universal translator. "I'm sorry, but you have to teach me. I feel... Language get harder, so my translator be breaking down, this time final."

“Oh. Well, you’ve learned a decent amount and I can teach you on the boat ride. Lucky you have that memory of yours. Mostly you lack grammar and have terrible r's.”

"I still can't read most your letters, I'm scared." Garak smiled brightly, giving him a quick nod to show he was more than up for the challenge. Garak has always been adaptable, if nothing else. 

“We’ll work on that. We can have lessons when we aren’t doing... what kind of work did you sign us up for anyway?”

"You, kitchen. I be cleaning floors. And have bunk beds in a shared room."

“Not too bad, I suppose. A few weeks on a boat and then we can land in South Africa. And after that, we can find one of the neutral zones, maybe. A few do exist. We can avoid going to Khan as much as possible…” Julian trailed off, gaze downcast. He knew that was little more than a pipe stream, and he Garak knew that even better than he did. 

Mercifully, Garak didn’t point that out. "I hope our roomates don't snore. It be so sad if something happen to them."

Julian chuckled and playfully hit his arm. “Play nice. Remember, we have to live with these people until we get there. Are they - could you tell - are they human or?”

"Look as people outside of... society, but no, don't think any like you. Nobody looked augmented."

Julian looked at a girl with long hair, looking distressed and talking with the boat owner. Something about her drew him to her, reminded him of himself. "What about that one?"

"Sarina? We can talk to her. Was nice with me."

"Good. We may need friends if we want to survive."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun dun dun... finally Sarina appears! we think the fact that she actually has a personality in this fic was good for her.
> 
> Comments and kudos keep us going!
> 
> And don't forget about [Babel Trek Open Project](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/BabelTrek)! It's an event for any and all works involving Star Trek and language! The works start going live on 18 January, but you have until the 8th of February if you want to contribute something!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Julian and Sarina get to know each other, and Julian's trauma and guilt become evident.

July, 1995.

Julian noticed right away that while Sarina barely talked, she hummed with perfect pitch as she cut vegetables at his side. She was staying in another room with the women, but would go watch the sea at night with a sad look in her eyes.

Julian sat down in the decks next to her one night, smiling softly. She met his gaze and then looked down at her hands. It was past midnight, so there was nobody to hear them talk. Most of the time Julian at least tried to simulate sleeping, so people wouldn’t notice he needed barely 4 hours per day, but that night he felt restless. “Where are you headed? I only know your name.”

"Nowhere. Anywhere. You?"

Julian remembered he should be cautious, but also... She was like him, Julian could feel it. Something inside him told him she was his people. She also seemed to barely need to sleep too. 

“There’s not many places for me to go. I’m not...” Julian swallowed a bit and decided he needed to just say it. Maybe that would help. Or she'd throw him overboard and end all of this for him. Both options were equally tempting at this point. “I’m not human, but I don’t want to take over anything either.”

Sarina nodded and gave him a watery smile, her gaze holding neither fear nor surprise. She knew what he was talking about, her expression told Julian she knew his secret before he told her. Probably suspected right when they boarded the ship, just as he did the first time he saw her.

The sadness in her tone made it obvious she was on the run too. “Tell it to them. They don't believe some of us are harmless. I lost my group some travels ago. I just hope they are safe. Hiding."

“I hope they are too.” He sighed as he let his arms fall slack. He has been lucky in some ways. He hadn’t had a group to lose. “I know they don’t. I thought for a while, that things would change or that no one would see what I was.” Now that he had started, he couldn't stop talking, hands shaking slightly. This was the first time he was with another augment. His parents had made it so that he had never encountered anybody else of his kind.

"The whole history of the human kind is one of fearing one group or another. What difference does it make if now they fear a brain? Things will never change, not for those who are different."

“I... it isn’t the same. We’re not... human exactly.” Julian shifted a bit, anxiously tapping his foot. It was easier talking to Garak, who had no option but believing the reality he presented to him. Sarina... Sarina came from the same world he did, and could have different views, views he was suddenly not sure he wanted to hear.

"They used to say the same about the people with other characteristics too, you know. I think they call it eugenics. Was any of that true?" Her eyes pleaded for him to understand, reaching a hand out towards him. Julian leans back, not wanting to be touched. 

“Of course not! That’s ridiculous and founded in notions of racism and sexism. And bad pseudoscience.” Julian looked offended by the idea, crossing his arms tightly against his chest. Still, his eyes didn't meet hers.

"And what is hunting us, then? I didn't want to go search for others like me, but I can't live with _normal_ people and not fear for my life." She looked into the distance again, swallowing tightly. Sarina balled her hands into fists and suddenly Julian felt guilty and he wasn’t sure why. "It's not fair."

“I... I tried too. I thought for awhile I would be all right, that I’d been clever enough to trick everyone around me. I lived in the countryside for a bit more than a year, mostly by myself.”

"We shouldn't have to trick people. If they say they are good, everybody believes them, why can't we be believed? We're considered dangerous just for existing. I never hurt anybody! I should have the benefit of doubt too, don't you think?"

“I’m sure you didn’t, but other people like us did and... and... we only exist because someone else didn’t get to.” Jules had been a small, slow kid. Julian bore almost no resemblance to him. 

"And who are _you_ to say augments aren't just retaliating? Who knows what they did to them when they were young, or how other people attacked them. I know what they did to me. I remember it all, whether I want to or not."

Julian shook his head a few times, voice coming out in near pants as panic rose in his chest. “That’s what I mean! My parents killed a six year old child to get whatever I’m supposed to be!”

"No, that's not what I mean." That felt like a slap across his face. Julian winced and wondered if it was too late for him to run. "What did _you_ , Julian, do to deserve to be hunted?"

“I stole that child’s life. That’s enough for me.” Just a small kid, who liked his teddy bear and drawing crooked trees.

Julian curled into himself a bit, shoulders hunched. He wondered where Garak was.

"You did? Or your parents and the doctor did that? I know I didn't have a choice. I was 3, Julian. And I remember every single moment, every single shot I received, how the world seemed different every time I came out of the doctor's office."

“Jules was six.” Jules had chosen the name for his bear out of a whim, when trying different sounds, to see if some were harder than others. A name without r’s was the one Jules found most pleasing and easy to pronounce. Julian never had problems with those letters afterwards. He didn’t have problems with anything at all. 

"I didn't change my name, or decided to leave my family, despite what they did. I only ran when the neighbours burned our house down."

“I didn’t find out I was augmented until I was 15. We kept moving and I never thought to wonder why. I remembered the shots, but believed my parents when they said it was a preventative measure. Was a fool I was.”

Sarina met his gaze, taking his hand between hers. Her voice was soft when she spoke. “And was it your fault, Julian?”

“Of course not! But it’s not - I owe it to Jules to -“ Julian covered his face with his hands, almost growling in frustration. Jules loved animals, but found them confusing. They all looked so alike. Except insects. He could always count the legs. After all, he had learned all the numbers to 6. Just a month later, Julian was able to count to a million.

"You don't owe anything to anyone. You didn't choose."

Sarina got closer but he pulled back, as if he had been hit by lighting.

“It doesn’t matter if I chose or not! Jules deserves to exist!” Some animals were different to others, and those were Jules' favorite ones. He drew elephants to no end, because their noses made it easy for him to recognize them.

"But you can't bring him back, as much as I can't be normal and live with my family!" Sarina cried as she tried to reach him, her voice shaking. 

“We don’t know that! My augmentations were done at six. If the doctor can undo them then - who knows.” But was he ready to live as Jules, to lose whatever the augmentation had brought to his brain?

“You’d die.” Sarina said flatly, meeting his gaze carefully. 

"You can't know that! Maybe.. maybe we could be normal."

"You realize that would still be a form of dying?" Garak's voice cut his response.

Julian flinched, shaking his head as he twisted around to look Garak in the eye. “Of course not! You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

"I think I saw enough in this boat to know. Your people have a history and a present of prejudice, and not just against augments." His English was definitely better now, but still needed some work. He just insisted he was Greek each time somebody asked. His translator was completely out of battery now, and he just carried it around in the hopes he'd somehow get airborne one day and be able to repair it.

“I... it’s not - I don’t care if anyone else is an augment. I care about what I stole.” 

"You didn't steal anything. You had your life ripped away without your consent. And even now you feel like you're in the wrong, not them!" Sarina looked at Garak, pleading as she slid down in defeat. How could she make Julian understand it was not his fault? 

Garak took his hands and squeezed them, sitting next to him so they were close. “You didn’t steal his life. He became you and you were so hurt that you tried to separate yourself from what your parents and those doctors - all humans- did to you.” He spoke slowly, making an effort to find the right words.

"Jules was just a child. I stopped being him, isn't that the very definition of being killed?" His voice was just a whisper, and he felt himself fight tears he had not shed even when he found out. He'd been too angry then, but now he was stripped of everything, out of options, with the only two people in the world that he wasn't afraid to talk to. There was nothing else. He was in a boat, cutting onions all day, wondering when his life would be at risk again.

Sarina sat at his side. "Little Sarina liked to paint and tell stories. The one that came out of the lab loves numbers, and sometimes spends days or weeks without saying a word."

“But you still think you’re Sarina?” Julian asked quietly, shoulders shaking a little as his voice ached.

"Of course I am. I am not the same Sarina I was yesterday, and I am not yet the Sarina I will be tomorrow, but that doesn't change that I am me."

Julian looked at his hands, trying to remember who he was before. “I liked to read before and after, I just got better at it. I used to not talk as much, though.”

“Now that is hard to imagine.” Garak gave him a little smile, squeezing his hand a few times.

"I was... The world was so confusing, so bright and noisy. And my father was always angry."

“And it was not confusing after?” Garak gently stroke his hair.

“Yes and no. It was confusing in some ways and not in others. And my father wasn’t as mad.”

"Did he hurt you?" Her eyes were gentle and sad. Garak merely looked pleasant, but there was something there that was just dangerous.

Julian shivered a bit, wondering if he was revealing too much. Then he decided that it didn’t matter. “Sometimes. Mostly before and then after I found out and wasn’t happy enough.”

"You shouldn't have lived through that, Julian. Nothing was your fault." She took his free hand. "it wasn't your fault."

Julian nodded stiffly and squeezed her hand back. “It wasn’t so bad, mostly he just got frustrated and would try to shake my shoulders enough that I came out smart. He didn't hurt me. He didn't.”

"Julian, violence is violence. Trust me, I know." Garak's voice was quiet.

Julian felt a small sound coming out of his throat that sounded a bit too much like a whimper.

“Mostly he just made it clear I wasn’t ever going to be good enough for him.”

"And torturing you was worth it?"

“He didn’t torture me. He screamed a bit, but he was, he was frustrated. And the enhancing. That was painful.”

"He shook you, screamed you, and then risked your life. He'd rather have a dead child than a not perfect one. And you still defend him?" Garak was not sure who he was talking about. Julian's father, or his own, the one he'd run to please again and plea with so he would be forgiven, maybe even not used or despised. The one he'd give anything to hear call him son.

“I’m not defending him, I would never - I hate him. But... he did what he thought was right at the time. He was just wrong and frustrated. I was not an easy child.” Julian muttered as he pressed his face against his hands again. Then he looked up at Garak, expression softening a bit when he saw the look on the other man’s face. Maybe this wasn’t only about him.

"I don't think your father was so out of options to try something dangerous in his own son. Nothing can push you into doing that."

“I... maybe not. I don’t know.” Julian let out a low sigh of defeat. “It certainly didn’t work out the way he wanted.”

They stood in silence, watching the sea, one holding each of Julian's hands. Soon they'd arrive to their destination and would have to look for another transport, which wouldn't be easy, considering no human dared go to Khan's lands. But those concerns were for the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos are what keep us going!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cape Town seems like a good place to hide and gather strength, but Julian can't escape the real world forever.

September, 1995.

Cape Town was a nice change of pace. The city was diverse enough for Julian and Sarina to blend in, and although Garak got sometimes curious looks, nobody stared too much at the bandaged man. 

Their boat had left them first in another city, Port Elizabeth, but the city was rumored to be full of augments, and as such, soldiers roamed the streets. After just a week, they had decided to flee, and found solace in another portuary city. This one didn’t seem as paranoid, at least not yet.

After some days just tending to their basic housing and dietary needs, they decided they needed to find other people like them. That or buy their own boat, if they wanted to make it alive to Australia. There was the temptation to just stay there, in South Africa. Sarina and Julian were already fluent in Xhosa and Afrikaans, and Garak was slowly learning those languages too, while communicating in English with only a bit of an accent to prove it was not his mother tongue.

Yet they knew peace was only temporary for people like them.

“You don’t know what to look for.“ Julian argued with Sarina, voice tight and brow furrowed. Sarina had decided to go out and find other augments. Surely there must be others hiding in the city, using the anonymity to avoid being caught. 

"No, but I can look until I know what I'm searching for. Don't worry, I know how to take care of myself. Done that for years." Sarina presses her hands against her hips, giving Julian a light glare. She wasn’t going to be talked out of this. hoped she'd also get news about her friends, though it seemed less likely by the minute. They appeared to have vanished.

“Be careful. Don’t say anything smart or move too quickly.”

"Don't worry. A blond, naive girl can get a lot more information than you think." She gave him her most charming smile, eyes wide and innocent. Julian shook his head, finding the sudden change in demeanor disconcerting. 

She then giggled and left before he could say anything else. She really loved having the last word.

"I don't think she's so unable to handle herself." Garak said when the door closed, grinning a bit as he took in Julian’s furrowed brow. 

“Maybe so. We’ll see if she has any luck. I haven’t been having much.” Julian smiled at him crookedly, and his answer was in Kardassi. There was no need to hide his abilities anymore, so since they had landed most of their conversations were a blend of both their native languages. Sarina was learning Garak's language too, at an amazing speed.

"For now we will have to stay here." Garak shrugged and turned on the TV. Julian's face flashed before their eyes, with a reward printed under his photograph.

"... he's considered to be on the run and dangerous, probably armed."

Julian closed his eyes and swallowed tightly. He tried not to panic, to remind himself that it wouldn’t help anything. He wasn’t - he didn’t - he was a fugitive. God. “I suppose we’ll need to move faster than we thought. I’m armed and dangerous, after all. Who knows what I could do.”

"Good thing you didn't go out today."

"At least our money issues could be solved if we turned ourselves. Look how expensive I am." Julian muttered in a low voice, and his attempt at humor died soon, as more lies were spluttered by the TV.

"... His accomplice is a mysterious man, covered from head to toes in bandages. He's been reported to shoot soldiers, and should be avoided at all costs..." The TV kept showing photos of them. Luckily Sarina was not yet part of their gang, it seemed.

"Well, I  _ did _ shoot them when we ran." Garak seemed more amused than he should at that. He wiggled his eye ridges, leaning over to give Julian a shark like grin, as though they weren’t both likely to be killed or worse in the next few hours. 

“Garak! This isn’t funny. They could come after you.” Julian cried as he rolled to his feet, pacing around the small space between. Julian knew what they’d to to him. He’d been told what was expected from him if augments fell prisoner, when they tried to recruit him. Sometimes he had nightmares in which he had accepted the offer.

"And they probably already have. If Sarina is not back in two hours, she probably has been taken."

“What? We need to go find her then!” Julian moved forward only for Garak to grab his wrist and force him to stop. Once again, Julian was surprised at the strength the scaled man had. He glared up at Garak, trying and failing to pull his wrist free. 

"First, we need to wait until the time we agreed is out. Trust me, I know how to do this. Right now you'd be walking right into their hands. You need to act smart."

Julian sat back down, though he didn’t look thrilled about it. “All right. I just... I don’t want anyone’s blood on my hands.”

Garak shook his head, expression like a chiding professor. "They are trying to lure you out, by doing this. If we go now, there will be blood without doubt, quite possibly ours, although I wouldn’t be opposed to making that blood come out of the soldiers."

Julian sighed, all the fight leaving his body suddenly. He felt so tired. Just when he was really thinking maybe they could stop running. 

“I know. I don’t understand how this happened. I’m not the only augment in hiding, but somehow it feels like people keep trying to get me.”

"Probably they gave alerts all over the world for different augments. I saw others in the TV too, when in England. Some were even more expensive than us, so don’t feel so important, my dear."

The next minutes seemed like hours for them, watching the images of their escape, listening to soldiers retell how the bandaged man had tried to kill them.

Finally, Sarina came back, with a warm smile and apples in her arms. "I didn't get info but at least I got us food! Free if I may add." She winked. She had exhibited a bit of a talent for pickpocketing before, much to Garak’s appreciation and Julian’s horror.

“Oh, well, that almost makes me feel better. At least I’m not alone in my sudden criminal status.”

"Is there something wrong?" Sarina leaned on their backs from behind the old couch they were sitting, handling each of them an apple.

“They found me out. I’m on the news and everything.”

"Really? What about Garak and me?" She seemed curiously unimpressed, but then again, she had sided with Garak for days in their plans to find a way out. She had never trusted this temporary peace as Julian had.

“Yes to Garak, no to you as far as we’ve seen. I understand if you want to go your separate ways. Being with us will endanger you."

She just leaned more on them, half body on the back of their couch, so her feet barely touched the floor as she slid over them from behind, softly landing between them.

"Or, maybe I want to be your undercover agent. I can do more than any of you now." Her eyes shone. She was more confident now, moving with the ease of someone used to be hiding and pretending.

She finally finished her weird wiggle, until she was with her head on the pillows and feet on the back of the couch, between them, watching the TV upside down.

“Thank you, Sarina, really.” Julian swallowed a few times to keep himself from tearing up, reaching a hand out toward her. He would have missed her terribly and they needed help now. “You’ll probably have to take the lead in Botany Bay too. I don’t know how to... not hide.”

“Oh, about that. I found something for us.”

“Something?” Garak was curious, raising an eye ridge as he leaned over to meet her eye to eye.

"I think there's a boat we could buy, if I hack into the bank and retrieve a not that large amount of money. I made the calculations and it could work. It’s not a luxury cruiser, but it will do."

Certainly Sarina was starting to show a bit of a criminal trait lately.

“Perfect. I don’t like stealing, but we don’t have many other options. We’ll need to get enough money for food as well.” Julian started doing calculations as well, marking things down in the air and giving out numbers at random.

"And water. We can be without food, but if we miscalculate that, we will die."

“Of course.” Julian added some more numbers in the air, frowning at calculations only he and Sarina could see.

"Also, we have to take into account the winds. If we take the latest forecast..."

Garak listened as they both did calculations, throwing numbers in the air and completing each other calculations and thoughts. It was an amazing sight. Both were being themselves, a bit inhuman, a lot more than any other of the humans Garak had encountered, but it was happy, almost innocent. They were planning a trip, not conquest. How could the other humans get confused about that, it was impossible to understand for someone like Garak. He knew what planning conquest and destruction looked like.

After Sarina left to find money and finish the transaction, Garak smiled at Julian far too sharply and, leaned in so they were face to face. He invaded a bit of his personal space. “You really are different.”

"Different to what?" He still looked defensive and vulnerable at that. Garak wondered if he'd ever get used to being himself.

“The humans. It isn’t a bad thing. I’m different as well. So is Sarina.”

"How can it not be a bad thing, if we are on the run like this?" He looked at his hands, trembling slightly. His voice grew a touch ragged. “How can it not be bad, if the one thing I want to do, cure people, is something they wanted to use to devise new ways to kill?”

“We’re on the run because of the humans’ narrow mindedness and inability to accept differences.” Garak corrected him, voice soft and almost gentle. Talking in his own language he had so many more words, he could display his ideas so more clearly. His gaze was firm though. “You shouldn’t treat yourself like they do, they are wrong in the things they say about you.”

Julian smiled sadly, suddenly going slack, his forehead nearly touching Garak’s. He suspected it didn’t have the same meaning here as it did on Cardassia. "Force of habit, I guess. I had 22 years of living first not being enough and then being too much."

Garak gave him an apologetic smile, even as he grew curious. Humans - and augments - must age differently than humans. “And now hopefully you’ll have seven times that learning to be yourself.”

"I... Wait, how long does your species live?" He laughed brightly and took Garak's hand. "We are lucky to get to 70-80, and that is being old."

“How tragic. We live between 130 and 150. You die so young.” Garak softly touched his cheek, and this time Julian didn’t recoil, holding his breath.

“We might not, augments are rumored to have extended lifespans.” Sarina’s voice floated in, as she returned with a triumphant smile. Julian jumped back on the couch, the moment lost. “Here, make room for me.”

"We augments are too recent to prove that. We’ll need at least a century on this planet, if we manage to make it last that long." Julian smiled and reclined back on the couch, slightly over Garak. He felt strangely comfortable with him, with both of them. "Will you stay long enough with us to prove that, or you'll run to your planet the first opportunity you have?"

“Maybe I’ll take you both with me. You’d like space. There are more opportunities to learn there, and you two wouldn’t be hunted. _ I _ might, but I’m quite good at getting out of difficult situations.” Garak slid an arm around Julian’s shoulder as he spoke.

"You'd take us with you? And what would we do, then?" Julian smiled flirtatiously. He was not sure what they were playing at, but he was not sure he wanted to stop either.

“Well, we’d travel together, maybe move somewhere nice and quiet. Sarina could live next door.” 

"Oh, and where would I live, then?"

Garak gave him a knowing smile, voice taking on a lilting quality. “I was thinking I could use a roommate, especially one who is so naturally warm.”

"As always, you're so wise, Mister Garak."

Sarina scoffed a bit loudly, leaning on Julian more fully. "Want me to go out? Or you could move to the other room."

She smiled warmly, though, enjoying this new family of hers.

Julian flushed with wide eyes, as though he had forgotten she was even there. But then grinned just a little too wide, shaking his head. “Not yet. Though I suppose that decides our rooms on the ship.”

"Yes,  _ please _ , I think you really need some time alone." She collapsed on top of them, laughing, head on Julian's lap, feet on Garak's. "So. I have everything set. Tomorrow we can have our ride and then we fill it with food and water and we sail."

“Perfect. A few weeks on the sea would be nice. I’ll get some books for us too.”

"And how do you plan on doing that? Neither of you can go outside, Julian."

“I have my ways.” Julian told her with a teasing smile. He was going to go dumpster diving in a mask. He’d spotted some places that were remodeling and throwing valuable books and movies away, and it was not stealing if they had discarded them already, was it? 

"Suit yourself, but I really hope we don't have to break you out of prison." Garak warned him, poking him in the cheek with one finger tip. 

Julian met his gaze, sparks building in his stomach. He never had been able to resist a challenge. “You won’t.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos are love and make us happy!
> 
> Also remember the stories in Babel trek are starting to get revealed, but you're still in time to submit new ones!


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally, Garak, Sarina and Julian leave human territory, marching to Khan's lands, the only place on Earth they can be safe... maybe.

It took Julian four hours and several trips, but he finally managed to get them a large collection of books, carrying them in his arms and an improvised cart. He came back to their temporary house covered with a thin layer of grime, sniffling a bit in a way that concerned Garak.

"I won't even ask what you did." Garak chided, quickly picking up a cloth. He started wiping down Julian’s cheeks, ignoring the way Julian rolled his eyes at him. 

“Just a little redistributing.” Not to mention breaking into a dirty basement and saving an amazing collection from mold and water leaks, which Julian was rather proud of himself for doing. People really did abandon the most precious things sometimes. “Now I’m going to shower and we can sail.”

"Why would you even do that?"

“Showering?”

“No, showering is something I beg you to do.”

Garak rolled his eyes and Julian laughed brightly, gaze growing fond as he reached for his hand. He was one of the few people that didn’t make him feel like an idiot when he got confused with things like that.

“For the books, Garak. I wouldn’t go anywhere without something to read, and God knows what either of us would do at sea with nothing to read.”

"Somehow I imagined you breaking into a library."

“Too risky.” Julian answered with a shrug, rolling his shoulders a few times. Sarina raised an eyebrow, tilting her head to the right curiously. “Public building. So I went to their recycling bins. I was afraid I'll end up only with accountancy books but lucky me, they had thrown good ones too.”

“These didn’t come out of bins, Julian.” Sarina looked at the books, raising an eyebrow and giving him a knowing look. She isn’t the only thief here. “Anyway, did you get us something else?”

“Oh, yes, but that’s a secret.” He had also broken into a VHS store that had been especially nasty to them one time, asking if Garak had something contagious and if he could wait outside. 

Garak let out a low scoff and kept putting boxes inside their rented van. They would move fast and by night, so they wanted to make sure they didn’t need more than one trip.

Julian helped grab a few boxes, finishing packing with a grin. There would barely be room for all of them, Sarina stretched out on top of a few boxes and him in the passenger seat pressed up against Garak’s side.

"We accounted the chance of unusual weather, didn't we?" Garak was not fond of the idea of running out of water in the middle of the ocean. He was in driver duty, having learned how to do so several weeks ago.

“We did, we brought enough for two months and 10 extra days. If we don’t get somewhere after that, well. We probably won’t survive anyway.” Sarina’s voice was too serene for Garak’s nerves. He’d always been a survivor, and he refused to go quiet into any good night.

"So, what would be your preferred way to do that? Hunger, drowning, lack of water?" He was from an arid planet, and lately all this water was getting on his nerves. And Julian had insisted on watching Titanic just some days ago. What’s more, he had sang the song. Several times.

“Hunger. We can hallucinate together.” She illuminated her face from behind with a little light she had bought. Julian smiles brightly at her, leaning over so a bit of the light hit his face as well. 

"So charming."

"There are worst ways of dying. Not that hunger and thirst are the best ones, but certainly there are worse." Sarina shrugged, voice so calm and even that it made Garak blink. That was usually his take after all. It felt strange to be the optimistic one for once. 

“Of course. And you could hold me while I starved and sing Cardassian lullabies to me.”

"You'd have to teach those to us before, so you're sure we can sing them."

“Of course. In fact, why don’t I try right now? That way if I die in my way to the boat, you’ll still be able to sing.”

Julian bolted up from his uncomfortable place, with boxes all around him. Julian grinned enthusiastically, reaching a hand toward Garak’s shoulder. "Yes! I want to learn them all. Then I can teach you songs from England."

“Oh well, why not? We have a long time left at sea and I could use a break from your film collection.”

"You didn't like my movies? But I managed to get so many more!" He pointed at the box at his side, full of VHS tapes. He gave Garak his most earnest expression, biting his lip a bit as he took Garak’s hand. 

“We can try some of them. I don’t mind them, and they do seem to make you happy.”

Sarina turned, her eyes shining. "I knew it! I knew the surprise was tapes! Which movies did you bring? Did you get a TV or a projector? Don't tell me you got that in the bins because I won't believe you."

“I may have... borrowed them from a very nasty person. He won’t miss them.”

Garak nodded approvingly. The doctor was certainly not as pure and virtuous as he claimed to be, which only added to a personality he liked.

He stopped smiling when he saw the boat Sarina had bought. 

He had not been expecting a luxury cruise, but still. At least he wouldn’t mistake it with the Titanic in his nightmares.

Sarina caught his look and let out a small laugh, gaze teasing as she leaned forward as much as she could. “Expecting something bigger? We’re lucky I got one with two rooms and a bathroom.”

"I've been known to roughen up. I just hope it doesn't have any holes." 

“Hopefully it won’t. It’s bigger than the last one, at least.” Julian says hopefully as they enter the first room, a dusty place with only a few blankets on the floor. Julian glanced at one of them and wrinkled his nose, wishing he had grabbed a few of those along with the books and videos. 

"The room, perhaps. The boat certainly not, although I'm glad we don't have to share with 20 smelly humans again."

The last boat had been just big enough for Garak’s taste, this one was one step from triggering his claustrophobia. 

“No, just the three of us.” Julian couldn’t help grinning a bit himself, some of the tension that he had carried for years going out of him. He used to like crowds, before. He liked sports, too, both as a player and as a spectator. Now the idea of being so much in the open terrified him more than anything.

"This boat needs a name. And please don't say Titanic, Julian." Sarina chided as she glanced around the boat approvingly. She was proud of herself.

"Kukalaka. As an ancient and powerful bear."

“That’s the name of the teddy bear you think I don’t notice you insisted on keeping in your bag even when we threw out food.” Garak snorted in a low voice, shaking his head fondly. They had thrown everything else when they fled Port Elizabeth, not risking staying there after the raids started.

"Still, it's a great name. Why, you have a better one?"

“No, I don’t. I think Kukalaka is fitting. He has been with us in bad and... well, in bad and worse.” Garak smirked and grabbed one of the crates of food. It was mostly dry goods and canned things.

"Kukalaka it is, then! She will ride the waves and take us to the coast. We will be adventurous pioneers, fighting against the odds." Julian proclaimed loudly, tone almost theatrical as he glanced out at the boat. Julian grabbed one of the boxes and ran inside the ship. 

Sarina grinned as she picked up one of the water tanks, watching Julian bounce around the back of the ship, carrying several boxes at once with an awkward grace. “He seems to be in good spirits.” 

Garak took the first books box, and wondered just how strong Julian really was, if he was able to carry several of those. "I'm not sure he's meant to be caged and hidden. He was getting mad inside the house."

“I noticed. He either didn’t stop talking for hours or just sat there almost silent. He should be out in the world. It’s a wonder he didn’t go to Australia years ago.”

Garak shook his head quickly, lips pressing into a thin line. It wasn’t a wonder to him, though he wished it were. “He wanted to help people. The problem is, people didn't want him."

“No, they don’t want us. They think we’re too smart and too quick, too different in small ways. We don’t act right.” Sarina shook her head, gaze growing clouded and heavy. No matter what they did, they were always wrong, it seemed.

"Their loss, I guess. Considering how much weight you're carrying, certainly having you around is an advantage."

“Thank you, lord Garak.” She made a mocking bow, low and deep. “Humans they think we’re too passionate, too much, but only Khan wanted to take over the world.”

"Yet it seems there are several following in his steps. I remember hearing of at least 10 factions in the news."

“Wouldn’t you want to change things if people saw you as something to be feared? I don’t want that, I'd like to change things... But mostly in the science department. So many things to worry about in the real world." She smiled as Julian took Garak's box out of his hands and ran off with it, managing not to trip even though he jumped over several flights of stairs.

“And Julian will still want to be a doctor when we get to the new world?” Garak asked him with a raised eye ridge as he carried Julian’s bag for him. He supposed it was only fair, since he was the one carrying less weight. Better make sure Kukalaka was safe.

"Of course I'll be a doctor, Garak! What else could I be? A doctor and maybe an explorer, studying new and exciting places. Conquering all the frontiers of the world!" He grinned and placed a quick kiss on his cheek, going for another box. He felt like he was practically vibrating from the possibilities. 

Garak couldn't help smiling a little too, taking a few boxes of his own. That should be it. “So are you over your... concerns about Australia?”

Julian stopped and turned, still smiling, though there was a tension to his mouth that hadn’t been there before. No, he wasn’t anywhere near over any of his concerns. "I may change their minds, make them seek peace. Or at least help build a hospital, who knows."

“You can, I’m sure they’ll need plenty. Too many are simply focused on fighting.” Garak didn't share his convictions that he could change the world. He'd seen far too much to believe that, but that was a discussion for later.

Julian brought the last box inside. He placed it in the floor, smiling softly at both of them. They were here. They were getting out alive. That’s more than most people could hope for. "Kukalaka is ready for her maiden voyage. Sarina, do the honors as captain of our ship."

“Of course!” She tapped a bottle of cheap wine gently against the side of the ship. No use wasting it. 

Then they set off.

They mostly looked out for other ships to avoid them, and docked only when necessary to refill supplies. In their spare time, they built solar panels to fuel their little movie projector and to make small experiments to entertain themselves.

A storm forced them to stop in China, and somehow they managed to communicate, even if the language barrier was a bit harder to overcome this time. Garak even felt a bit left out when they made friends with an old woman and laughed at jokes he had to have translated. 

Soon, they saw the coast of Australia, and a flag they recognized easily. 

They were in Khan's lands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos are love!
> 
> Soon chapters will begin to become a bit longer, and the conspiracy will begin to unravel, since not everything is as it seems to be... someone has been tampering with the timeline.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally, they arrive to Khan's lands, and Julian and Garak finally have to decide what kind of relationship they want. Behind them, Khan's residence watches over them menacingly... if this is the end of the road, where else to go if everything else fails?

December, 1995.

Julian walked off the boat nervously, pulling at the edge of his sweatshirt to keep his hands from shaking. He wanted to seem together and strong, seeing as how they were immediately approached by  _ armed _ guards. Julian threw his arms into the air, palms out as he hurried to stand between his friends and the soldiers. "Don't shoot! We're refugees!"

The older guard took a close look at his face and then smiled widely, taking off his helmet and grabbing his hands. He had an amicable face, with freckles all over. He also had a big scar on one side of it, and seemed blind from one eye. “You’re the doctor with the mysterious friend. We were worried they had killed you! It's an honor to have you here at last.”

"We were worried we'd be killed, too, if I am to be honest." Julian smiled at him, relaxing a bit as the tension went out of his shoulders. He'd expected to find angry, frightening people, and instead, they were all rounding him and his friends, taking off their masks and talking animatedly. 

“I’m sure. Those humans - they’re ruthless. Trying to murder a doctor of all people.” The leader shook his head with sorrow, patting his shoulder as if they've been friends their whole life. 

Julian started to open his mouth to argue, but Garak gave him a small kick to shut him, taking the lead before he opened it and got into trouble again. His English was almost perfect now, if a bit too British. "Yes, yes, so we decided to sail away and search for people more willing to put our talents to work."

"And who is the mysterious masked man, since we are at it?"

Garak gave him a small bow, and Julian could almost feel the smirk under the mask. He just barely resisted the urge to kick Garak in turn. "That, I think I'd like to reveal to Khan himself first. He'll decide what to do with that information. Consider it my gift for  _ our  _ leader."

The guard nodded, quickly gesturing toward a nearby mansion. “Of course. A wise man. We will take you to the main house. You can shower and have a good meal first.”

"So kind of you." Garak made a small bow with his head again. Without showing any part of his body, it certainly was hard to convey expression.

Julian followed suit, taking Sarina’s hand and positioning himself in front of Garak. He could keep them both safe.

Or at least he hoped he could.

They were taken to a spacious house, with big beds and several rooms. Just the bedroom was bigger than their little boat, with so little room to move Garak had almost had a meltdown several times, and other times it had not been an almost at all. Sarina ran inside one and jumped to the mattress, bouncing a little and falling with her arms open wide.

"Haven't been this comfortable in over 10 years!" She smiled, sinking her nose in the pillows. She let out a low sigh, hands spreading out on the sheets. "Everything smells nice."

"I'll let you two mostly-humans enjoy jumping, I will go clean myself up first." Garak smiled softly, removing his bandages. Sometimes they were far too serious and adult, other times... other times he was reminded of how both his friends had been robbed of their childhoods.

Julian smiled at her brightly, flopping back on the other side of the bed. He ran a hand over the sheets, grinning a little. “I haven’t in about 7, mostly because uni was not the most luxurious place. But even before that, my father wasn’t a fan of relaxation, he wanted me up and studying. And I’m not sure Garak ever has.”

"So... where will you sleep, Julian?" She smiled mischievously and leaned closer to him, turning so she was flat on her stomach, hands under her chin. "Obviously my room will be  _ my _ room, but I don't think Garak will mind sharing, even if now there's no more bunk beds."

“I... I’d like that, but I can’t tell if he means it when he flirts. He teases me twice as much as he compliments me.” Julian sighed as he leaned in, shaking his head a little. He wondered if that meant something good or bad. “And besides, I am not exactly what he’s used to. I don’t have a single scale. He once told me I look like he could open me with his claws.”

Bunk beds, not being able to shower for days, the constant fear of death or of Garak jumping into the sea in the middle of a panic attack... certainly there hadn’t been a lot of room for them to analyze their feelings for each other, but now all those things were in the past. Suddenly Julian was facing what he hated most, self reflection and his own, already hurt too many times feelings.

"He doesn't seem to mind you're scaleless, you know. Maybe you are  _ exotic _ ! And he's not flirty with me, anyway." She winked at him. At this point, shoving them inside the same room had proven to be pointless so she was running out of ideas.

“No, he isn’t. You’re more like our little sister. He is flirting with me, I think, but that scares me. My father always wanted me to be... nice. Sometimes I feel our flirting is one step from arguing, and he pushes me to the edge so much I can't pretend to be soft and well mannered.”

"Your father is a world away, Julian. We can be what we want now. What we  _ are _ ." She threw herself back, spreading on the sheets comfortably and looking at the ceiling. “And he seems to like how you are when you’re not all soft and human.”

“Maybe. I mean, I don’t want to be mean.” Julian laughed a bit as he laid back and closed his eyes. He let himself sink into the bed.

"Not mean. Honest."

“I never have been good at holding my tongue. People used to call me tactless. The good doctor with terrible bedside manners.” He curled up and yawned, feeling relaxed for the first time in months. Maybe years. He wasn’t hiding.

"Maybe that is what this new society needs." Garak smiled at them as he spoke in Kardassi, clean and still with his hair wet, dressed with a gown he'd found in the big wardrobe in the room. His tail protruded from under it, almost comically. "It certainly looks comfortable, mind if I join you?"

“I wouldn’t be opposed.” Julian answered as he moved over a bit to make room for Garak, suddenly feeling nervous after his small conversation with Sarina. He had no way to tell how much his friend had heard. It was always impossible to tell with him.

Garak got himself comfortable and pulled them both closer to him. "I will do whatever is needed for us to survive in this brave new world."

“Good, good. We’ll need each other.” Julian murmured as he curled up against Garak’s side, pressing his face into his shoulder.

"And I certainly will be there for you, my dears. I will see what can I offer to Khan in exchange for your safety." He pulled Sarina close too. They would survive, more, they would make a life for themselves in this new place, and thrive. He'd look to it, he'd give his people the life they deserved. He was a man of service, and certainly serving them was a duty he did without regrets.

“Don’t offer anything you can’t get back.” Sarina warned as she leaned against him on that side. Julian curled closer and closed his eyes. He wouldn’t let him.

"I know how to take care of myself, you don't have to worry. I did manage to keep myself alive all this time, after all."

“You did, but we want to keep you alive for much longer.” Julian murmured as he let sleep wash over him. He really felt safe for the first time in months. Even in the boat, he jumped in his sleep every so often, scared a bomb would kill them.

Sarina slowly disentangled herself and went to take a shower. "I'll let you guys rest." She winked at Julian with a hint of a smirk. Then she disappeared.

Some hours later, Julian woke up pressed against Garak’s chest, his hair brushing the underside of Garak’s chin.

He tried not to move but the lizard's eyes opened as soon as his breath changed. Julian was always surprised at the alert levels of Garak, and usually wondered what could have caused him to be like that. His past was still something he could never quite pierce together.

“I see we’re alone.” Julian murmured softly, careful to move in ways he hoped Garak perceived as non-threatening, in case his body was awake before his mind. He’d been shoved against a wall more than once before recognition came into the lizard’s eyes and the panic subsided. “I’m sorry for falling asleep on you.”

"Sarina decided to go shower and chose her own room. Something about being a third wheel, although I don't understand the expression." Garak smiled warmly, brushing a hand against his cheek. "You were a quite comfortable blanket."

“Good, I’m glad I wasn’t an unwanted weight. First time without bunk beds or blankets on the floor since my small cabin hideaway and I fall asleep on you."

"Oh, how terrible. Shame on you, you almost-human. The lack of restraint you show, you scary augment." He softly tangled his fingers in Julian's hair. “I still want to know what a third wheel is, you know.”

Julian swallowed and reminded himself to be brave. This was a new world, with new opportunities and chances. “A third wheel is... a third wheel is when a third person is there when two other people are flirting or on a date or being generally... romantic.”

"I see. Kind of a strange expression, don't you think?" Garak's face gave him nothing.

“It’s because bicycles - a human transportation method - only has two wheels. Adding a third would make it hard to control or, or, for children.” Julian explained nervously with a slight shrug, carefully inching off of Garak’s chest. He was a fool.

Garak pushed him closer again, a bit forcefully. "I see. Such a convoluted metaphor, but then, you said the same when I taught you Kardassi ones."

Julian took the cue and stretched out on top of Garak again. He laughed a bit, pressing his face into a ridge. “Maybe both our cultures have some strange ideas.”

"Yes, though certainly you're more adaptable than you seemed at first." He sank into Julian's hair. He was not sure what they were doing, but certainly decided to go with the flow.

“Do I? And what exactly do you mean by that, Mister Garak?”

"Well, I've seen you travel half world and pick up 7 languages while doing that. Certainly an impressive feat. I was especially proud of you when we stopped in Korea and you just started to talk only a couple hours later."

“I - well, I’ve always had a knack for languages.” Julian explained with a hint of a flush, ready to get defensive - and then he stopped and laughed, feeling faintly ridiculous. In this new world he didn’t have to hide his talent anymore.

"Don't feel ashamed of your gifts, my dear." Garak kissed his forehead, easing him down again.

“I... I’m not gifted. I’ll probably be the dumbest augment here.” Julian admitted with a hint of a sigh. He surely had lived too long in the human world for their tastes. “And using those abilities scares me a bit. I don’t want to do anything wrong.”

"You'll be surprised of what you can do once you stop pretending to be a human, dear. And anyway, I don't care about them, nor should you."

“I’m not pretending to be human anymore. I can’t, remember?” Julian asked softly, scrunching his face up a bit. He didn’t have any choice in the matter. “Some of them are lovely and kind, humans. Hardworking and industrious. Good people, like those we met on our trip.”

"As with any group of people through the galaxy. There's infinite diversity out there."

“Of course, but... how could I not resent everything they work for, I get as an unfair advantage?”

"I've seen sports in your TV. Do those who get better performance because their bodies are fit for that discipline get punished?"

“They work for those bodies, Garak. No one is born like that. They put in time and sweat, even if some have a natural talent.”

"Certainly here you will have to work, then. Now you're amongst your equals."

Julian shivered a bit and shook his head. Garak didn’t understand. Couldn’t, really. He had the misfortune and fortune of growing up among his equals, from the sounds of it. Julian... Julian has never been with people like him, not even before the augmentation. His father had not deemed him smart enough for kindergarten then. “I won’t measure up.”

"You won't know until you try. Nobody is born measuring up, Julian." He pulled him closer.

“They all were. Not me, they changed me. I’m not technically like them either. I was in the age limit for the intervention when it happened to me.” Julian felt sure they would resent him for the same reasons he resented himself.

"Sarina was changed as a child too, and I'm sure several more were, too. Why is it you feel the need to suffer about being different all the time?" Not for the first time, Garak wondered exactly what had been done to him as a child, not just medically.

“I don’t feel the need to suffer! But I - I just want to be... good at things because I’m good at them. I’ve spent my whole life either being not capable enough or too capable, and now I’m back to the first. Just once I want to be good  _ enough _ .”

"And what about fixing my leg so seamlessly? Nothing I've seen in this world shows that technology is available outside of your pockets. Isn't that being good?"

“Everyone here can do that too.” Julian dismissed as he tried to curl away from Garak. So much for Sarina’s hopes.

"I don't care for everyone else. They weren't there when my leg was broken. Just because they can doesn't mean they would, either. Compassion is not that common in this universe."

“It might be more common on Earth than it is on Cardassia.” Julian smiled optimistically for a moment.

"I still don't care about anybody else in either planet."

“Because you haven’t met anyone else yet.”

"Your self-esteem really needs some working, my dear. Or you think I'm so flighty I'll let go of you as soon as I meet anybody else?" Garak clucked as he flicked Julian’s nose lighty. 

“Of course not, but you’ve only met two people.” Julian murmured in a low voice as he closed his eyes. He'd seen glimpses of people on the island as they were escorted. Beautiful, shiny.

"And I don't need to meet more. Now will you keep squirming away or you'll come back here? Certainly you enjoy giving mixed signals." He huffed, furrowing his brow.

“I - Fine. Fine.” Julian relaxed half on top of him and half on the bed, chuckling a bit at his friend's short patience.

"You seemed so sure of your medical skills when we met. So full of gadgets and tech you had developed."

“I was in a war zone and I could be confident I was the smartest person in any room I entered. Now I can be confident I won’t be in any room.”

"And I'm confident you won't be the dumbest. I've made a career of being able to read people." He kissed his forehead again, letting his lips linger there.

“Then how did you end up getting sent to Earth of all places? And don't tell me again that story about hemming a shirt too long.” Julian asked as he kissed a ridge, curious and teasing at the same time.

"I may read, but also I tend to have a big mouth."

“Hmm, I have noticed that. You offended the wrong people? I can relate.”

"You noticed it, but you don't seem to want to do anything about it."

“Your big mouth? I like it. You’re brilliant and clever, and well, a bit mean, but I don’t mind that.” He only minded it in himself. 

"You're mean too. I seem to remember being thrown from a market because you started to argue the price of a fruit. But that was not what I was referring to."

“I’m not mean, he was trying to rip us off!” Julian argued for a moment, crossing his arms as his eyes lit up with delight. Then he stopped as Garak’s words hit him. Oh. Oh. “Are you... do you want me to...?”

"Not the fastest man in the world, are you." 

"I think I already said that."

Garak smiled mockingly and pulled him into a kiss. Certainly, if he expected Julian to catch on subtleties, they'd be at it all day.

Julian laughed into his mouth, kissing him as he brushed his hands down the sides of Garak’s flanks. He had wanted to do this for months. “You didn’t make a move either.”

"Well, I was following what I saw in your movies, waiting for a moment to do a heroic action that earned me the right to pursue you."

“You could have made a move after you nursed me back to health then, after I was shot.”

"Oh, I thought it required something more, like painting a nude portrait or fighting an evil mastermind with a fondness for cats."

“No, nothing so arduous, as I’m easily impressed. So, what did you find interesting about this simple almost human, mister dragon, that made you want to be heroic?”

Garak was not one for compliments and soft words, but for once he decided to comply, as his human really seemed to need that. He wondered if somebody had ever told him something nice aside from complimenting an intelligence he didn't feel was his own. Probably not. "You are brash and compassionate, and have terrible taste in music and movies but insist on sharing them. Books, they are a bit better, but certainly I could recommend you some classics of my planet, as Shakespeare has nothing on Preloc."

Julian opened his mouth, fake indignation all over his face. “I’ll have you know that all of my friends think I have excellent taste. Maybe you’re just not aware of how Fine earth arts are.”

"And there you are again, that way of arguing. You've no idea how shamelessly flirty you'd be on my planet. I couldn't take you to any public place like that, they’d try to snatch you away from me." Garak teased as he ran a hand down his cheek, grinning as he tried to imagine Julian on his home. 

“Really?” Julian’s eyes widened, and he pulled back. For a second Garak thought he might have said the wrong thing, that is until he saw the delight in Julian’s eyes.

"Oh yes, a totally shameless flirt. You'd be a menace. I may have to have you in a leash."

Julian hovered him, suddenly emboldened. He pressed a hand lightly against his shoulder. “Hmm, I’m shocked. Here everyone just thinks I’m abrasive or annoying.”

"Humans are such a bland species. Their loss, don't you think?"

“Oh very much so. It’s so boring, trying to date people who don’t like to debate at all.”

"What would I do if you didn't rise to the bait when I insult Shakespeare? It'd be so boring to be on this planet."

Julian got close to his mouth again, not quite kissing. Teasing. “We’d talk about things we both like, pleasantly. In a very civilized way.”

"But it'd be a lot more boring."

“Oh yes, extremely so. But it’s what most people like.” He’d tried to imitate them, several times. Some he’d even been able to fool himself into thinking he was in love while talking about pleasantries and trying to look like someone he was not.

"We are not most people." Garak whispered against his mouth, not quite touching either. Two could play at this game. 

“No, I don’t think we are. How lucky for us.”

"So, I won't have to worry about you leaving me for less... Scaly people?" Garak smiled at him softly, caressing his soft skin.

“No, I happen to like your scales. The texture is quite nice.” He rubbed his nose into his neck ridges, hard and cool. Very nice indeed.

"Good. Wouldn't have been very nice of you to go out and ditch me for a younger augment, would it?"

“I wouldn’t dream of it. Humans have nothing on you.” Julian assured him before he finally pressed their lips together. The kiss was soft and lingering, hands gently resting on Garak’s shoulder. 

"Lucky me, then. So, should we take advantage of the fact that Sarina excused herself out saying she's a third wheel?"

“Maybe we should. After all, we haven’t gotten any time alone since we left the village. And bunk beds certainly didn't make for a romantic escapade.” Julian murmured as he pressed another kiss to a ridge, his hands moving up and down Garak’s chest. 

"True, true. We should make up for the lost time."

“Do you have any suggestions?”

"Plenty." Garak slide his hand through Julian's side, grinning. Yes, they needed to make up for so much and he thought they might finally have time to do it. Maybe Khan’s sanctuary wouldn’t be so bad after all. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments, kudos and questions are our life and blood! Very, very soon things will change for our gang, and it will be revealed if this was really an AU or not...


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Khan is so interested in his new toys. Too bad the human armies are already getting close to his island.
> 
> \-----  
> Julian jokingly called him Rasputin one day after work. Garak cocked his head, curious. "What's that, dear? Some kind of animal?"
> 
> “He was the advisor to the Russian royal family. Brilliant and nearly unkillable, though in the end they did manage to do so. He was a dangerous man. Not a good man, but admirable in some ways.” Julian mused as he sat cross legged on the floor.
> 
> "I like the unkillable part. Was he also a refugee?" Garak smiled brightly and turned the TV on

The next day, the same soldiers came looking for them, saying Khan wanted to meet them. It was not a military escort, thought, with them talking animatedly, telling them stories and asking about their trip. It turned out the leader was called Leon, and he'd fled all the way from South America a bit after the region had broken into three factions. He happened to end up living in a human one where augments were denied citizenship. He'd been a martial arts teacher before that, so becoming a guard was natural. He had also married once he settled on the island, so protecting it was his pride. 

Above them, Khan’s castle looked down on them, dark and impenetrable. It was not an ornate place, but a real fortress, a watching eye over all the citizens on the island.

Once they arrived at the terrifying building and entered the audience hall, Julian felt nervous again, looking down at the floor as he waited for Khan to speak. This would define their future, or lack of it. There was nowhere else to go, not anymore. This was the end for them.

Khan entered the room accompanied by two Amazonian guards and pondered the newcomers, looking at the still masked Garak with curiosity. He circled them, noticing the small bulge his hidden tail made in the back of his cloak. With one swift movement, he cut its restraints and set it free, making it fall loudly to the floor. Garak stood there, impassive, not moving even with the people surrounding him and murmuring.

"Seems I got myself something new and special after all." Khan chuckled in a voice tinged with good humor that nonetheless made Julian’s skin crawl. 

Julian moved protectively next to him, not sure what he could do but sure he would try. “Garak is special. He’s also brilliant, just as brilliant as any of you, even if he loo...”

"I didn't ask for your opinion,  _ doctor _ Bashir." Something in his tone made Julian decide he'd be happy the day he had a reason to stand in front of him and thwart his plans. Another man with a bit of power using it to his advantage. Maybe Augments weren’t that different after all. Khan smiled at Garak. "I want to see the face under the mask."

Garak lifted his mask off slowly, smirking calmly once it was removed. Sarina smiled serenely next to him, but her stance was tense. They were unarmed and surrounded by people stronger than any of them, after all. Julian held his stiff posture, still in fight or flight mode as he flexed his hands a few times. 

"See anything you like, your highness?" Garak held his gaze, blue eyes fixed on him and unblinking, soft defiance in his tone. He knew this kind of men, and what they wanted and needed. Soft and submissive wouldn't do, not until some time had passed and his pride required him to believe he had tamed the monster.

“Yes, I see a marvel." He softly touched the scales around his eyes. "Tell me, are you another human experiment, or something entirely new?”

"I'll let you decide which explanation you like better. Needless to say, my brain matches my uniqueness."

“It would have to, for you to make it all the way here alive.” Khan glanced at Garak with a thoughtful smile, before turning his gaze to Sarina. “Unlike Julian Bashir, you haven’t been on the news.”

“I guess little girls with no known talents don't bring attention to themselves." Sarina smiled innocently at him, her expression giving nothing of her brilliance or charms. 

“A clever girl indeed, who knows how to survive.” He turned to Julian again, still smiling as his gaze grew thoughtful. His tone was icy and cruel. “But you couldn’t help showing off, could you? You had to show the humans how less they are compared to you, steal weapons and get all the eyes of the planet on you.”

"I guess trying to fix a bit a hurting world does that, won't you say? All I did was to cure people in a warzone, which seems to be enough to be regarded as a menace these days." His tone was glacial, and his eyes were fixed on Khan's. He could feel his hands shaking, skin crawling at the words. 

He wouldn't go down without a fight. He'd faced enough men thinking medicine was a sin already.

Khan shocked him by actually giving him a real, almost sympathetic smile this time, laughing loudly at his words. That was almost more terrifying. “Of course it is. Humans are afraid of what they cannot comprehend. You were too good of a Doctor for them, too quick, so they rejected your help. I know how that feels like, we all do, here.”

"And what about your people? Will they want to accept my help healing them?"

Khan put an arm on his slender shoulders, almost making him fall as he pulled the doctor closer, the gesture far too intimate. Julian could feel the strength, the incredible power in those arms. “They’re  _ your _ people too, doctor Bashir. And yes, we have far more soldiers than we do doctors in our ranks. Your coming here is an unexpected blessing, a needed one.”

"I guess something good came from all this traveling the world, then. Is there a place I could start working? My friends will assist me."

Khan was not ready to leave the strange man roaming alone, though. He knew talent when he saw it, as he also knew defiance. Both were in him, more than in his two friends. This was a man that could either make him rise or fall, and he'd rather avoid the second by keeping him occupied.

“Of course, but I’d prefer the three of you to stay in the palace for now. You can work on the medical wing once we finish moving you here.”

"I thank you for that opportunity." Julian was almost surprised at the genuine gratefulness in his own voice. Some months ago, Julian may had either jumped at the chance or opposed strongly, but now... Really, there was no other place for them but the stars, and those were so far away.

“Of course. I’m sure you’ll all find a place here.” Khan made a dismissive gesture with his hand, and they were led back to their rooms, while the new ones were prepared for them.

This time, once they were left alone, Sarina stayed with them, sitting in one of the chairs. Julian laid across the bed, limbs hanging loosely by his side and eyes screwed shut.

"I feel we've just been captured. So much for traveling the world." Julian sighed as he ran a hand down his face. He thought … he had been too optimistic. Again. 

“To an extent, but at least here we can bide our time in luxury until we figure out the next step.” Garak knew he'd be the one walking on thin ice here. Khan wouldn't let him alone.

"And what would that next step be? Nowhere in the world is safe." Sarina reminded them as she curled more fully into the chair. She wrapped her arms around her legs tightly.

“I don’t know. Khan... he likes us too much, I think.” Julian groaned as he ran his hand down his face again, as though trying to erase all his features. So much for being a faceless augment. Not even here he could hide. 

"And he certainly assessed us right away. He knows all our talents and flaws already." Garak felt strangely reminded of his father. Maybe he could use that in his favor, be what he’d been before. That’d give his friends a safe life.

Julian raised an eyebrow at that, tilting his head to the right. He furrowed his brow, just resisting the urge to let his mouth hang open. “What do you mean?”

"He'll make use of us, and certainly will make use of me. You are a wild card, Julian, so he'll keep the most vigilant eye on you. Sarina is charming but he'll make sure she's under control too. Charming people can be the most dangerous. We will be caged golden beasts."

Julian shook his head a bit, biting his lip. He wanted to believe... “I’m fine to be used as a doctor. But I need to protect the two of you from him.”

"And who protects you, Julian?"

Julian swallowed a bit and shook his head again. He couldn’t consider his own safety. Not now. “I’m the one he’s most worried about, and I can’t tell what he thinks of me. If one of us has to be sacrificed -“

"No one will be sacrificed, and that is not negotiable, Julian." Garak's cut him off, tone sharp. He pressed a quick kiss to his forehead, half in affection and half as a warning. 

“All right. But I don’t want you risking yourselves to protect me either.”

"That, you don't get to decide. Now, how about we go eat with our new friends? They said dinner was a communal activity after all, and we certainly need to smile and make friends. We are the honored guests after all." 

Garak changed his expression to a polite and harmless one. Up until now, he'd been masked so all he had in his arsenal was his voice and body attitude, but now he could use his round and soft face to make people like him, even if he was sure this people would not fall for it so easily.

The first moments were awkward. When they entered there was silence in the room, and some even paid respect for them, as their odyssey was an inspiration for all Augments. Then Leon called them over, wanting to introduce them to his wife, and conversations broke all around them, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

Julian ended up spending nearly an hour discussing literary theory with a man from France and a woman from Japan. Sarina and Garak had to collect him at the end of the night.

"Wait, I still have a lot of points about Victor Hugo they need to hear!" Julian complained as he crossed his arms. Garak merely scoffed and pulled on his arm lightly. "We will continue this tomorrow, you're both warned. This won't end here." Julian pointed his finger at them and wagged it, making the woman laugh brightly at him. 

When they were walking to their quarters, in the clear and warm night, Julian turned to his friends, smiling more widely than they've ever seen him. "It was amazing! They were so well read! It was really stimulating, not having to pretend."

“They were, but you were just as well read.” Garak noted thoughtfully as he linked his arm through Julian’s. Sarina walked backwards in front of them, jumping every some steps and smiling warmly as she led them down the hallway. “Indeed, you were both quite popular. I think Sarina has some admirers now.”

"Andrè was born augmented, but Tomiko is like me, she was human until she was 8! Can you believe it? People even older than me went through it!" Julian's eyes were shining, feeling he didn't need to hide for the first time in his life.

Garak couldn’t help softening a bit at that, squeezing Julian’s hand. 

Sarina smiled back, her own eyes bright with understanding. “We’re not alone here, not anymore.”

"And we don't have to hide. Even Garak doesn't draw that much attention."

“I noticed that after the initial looks of shock people were more curious about my clothes than my scales. I may even have gotten some to rethink their ugly fashion choices. Too bad I don’t think I’ll be allowed to open a clothier shop here.”

"A good change, don't you think?" Julian hooked his arm to Garak's on one side, and Sarina on the other. "We can be happy here."

“Yes, I think we will.” Garak murmured before kissing Julian on the forehead.

The next days passed slowly and peacefully. If Julian made an effort, he could picture the war as something that was not really happening, since his days were spent mostly fixing small accidents and making sure children were growing stronger. One girl paid him with sweets for tending to her scratched knee.

Sarina was working on the spacedock, and she'd come home every day talking about how soon their ships would go to space. Her eyes were fixed on Vulcan, after all the stories Garak had told them. 

Garak, though, he was at Khan's side all the time. The siege of New Zealand was a success because he pointed him to a small dot in the surveillance photos that seemed uninteresting at first and turned out to be a human nuclear weapon they successfully neutralized. After that, he was called to every meeting, and his soft and well mannered voice was the one that led them to victory time and again. He knew he could lead the augments to victory, but tried to make his suggestions as small as possible, knowing the world he may help build was not one Julian wanted to live in.

Julian jokingly called him Rasputin one day after work. Garak cocked his head, curious. "What's that, dear? Some kind of animal?"

“He was the advisor to the Russian royal family. Brilliant and nearly unkillable, though in the end they did manage to do so. He was a dangerous man. Not a good man, but admirable in some ways.” Julian mused as he sat cross legged on the floor, making several more notes about one of his recent patients and their diet. The augmentation had not been quite successful in them, and he was adjusting their meals so their accelerated metabolism didn't lead to malnutrition. He was really changing the world, one patient at a time.

"I like the unkillable part. Was he also a refugee?" Garak smiled brightly and turned the TV on. He liked to be informed of what was happening, and also tuning on different channels helped him learn new languages. He was proficient in 4 already, and getting good in 2 more. Keeping up with the augments was not easy, but needed if he wanted to stay safe.

“He wasn’t exactly. His backstory is rather... complicated.” Julian admitted in a low voice, leaning up to glance at the TV. There were more war reports, and Julian couldn’t help focusing on the numbers.

"Maybe you could tell it to me one day." Garak pulled Julian closer to him, and felt him shiver as the reports of Sudan being bombed continued on. At that point nobody knew which faction was responsible, humans or augments.

"Part of my family came from that country, Elim."

“I’m sorry, dear. Do you have relatives left there?” Garak asked as he wrapped his arm around his waist, watching the flares of light go up. Julian shook his head, sliding it onto Garak’s shoulder.

"I think I don't. Certainly I don't have now."

“I suppose not. And your parents are in London?” Garak asked softly, knowing Julian would care despite his complex relationship with them. He wanted to attribute that to Julian's natural goodness, but then, he still worried about his own father, and he was not nearly as good a man as his young lover.

"Yes, last thing I knew they were there." He sighed in a low voice, wanting to close his eyes but knowing he couldn’t, shouldn’t. No one could have that luxury. Not right now. "As far as I know, that city is mostly in one piece, so they must be safe."

The TV programming changed, and pop music started to sound, making Garak almost jump. "Dear, what is wrong with the musical taste of your species?" He looked at Madonna with an offended expression.

Julian glanced at her, grateful for the distraction. He adopted his most antagonizing voice, knowing what it did for Garak. “Madonna is a superstar, Elim. She’s been popular for over a decade. She muddies the water between what’s acceptable and what isn’t, culturally speaking.”

"I can't imagine that video is acceptable, dear." Garak seemed pretty interested, though, leaning in and pressing one hand under his chin. 

“It isn’t at all. She’s maligning Christianity, which is one of the most common religions in human culture and the ruling religion in the Western Hemisphere. It really is a scandalous song.”

"I see. I find it curious, too, how your culture seems to have so many different spiritual systems. We abandoned those some centuries ago."

“Did you? How fascinating. Some people have here, myself included. But plenty of others still believe strongly. In fact, polls show that people are less likely to see you as trustworthy if you don’t believe in some kind of higher power.”

"In my planet it was the opposite. There was that notion that not pursuing materialism kept us poor."

“Ah, here the idea is that the poor will be rewarded in the afterlife. At least in Christianity.”

Julian let information soak in, throwing data and analysis at Garak. Better to concentrate on that than the massacres being shown on TV again.

"... Argentina surrendered to Khan just 10 minutes ago, and..."

“Another country falls.” Sarina said with a note of sadness as she entered and flopped across the bed.

"And now Khan has a foot on South America, to fight the Brazil and Venezuela coalitions." Garak shook his head, pressing his mouth into a thin line. He wondered if Julian resented him for being Khan’s advisor, even if he was trying his best to keep his advance slow.

“Yes, he moves closer to the Americas everyday.” Julian looked at him sadly. “Don’t worry, I know you have no other choice. None of us have anymore.”

Days kept moving slowly, and the war seemed far and almost unreal, as they worked and lived in a communal way.

Then the sound of bombs started.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We really love comments, they brighten our day! Also feel free to ask anything, though we may not reveal some things as a lot is about to happen...


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nowhere to run but the starship Botany Bay.

July, 1996.

Garak ran to Sarina and Julian. They were the only thing that mattered as everything exploded around him. His ears rang with the screams surrounding him and pain. It didn’t matter.

He got to the infirmary and Julian grabbed his arm, squeezing his hand as he let out a quick breath. Then he grabbed Sarina’s hand as well when she arrived moments later. They had agreed to meet there, should anything happen. They would not let anything separate them. 

Julian gasped as he grabbed her hand, eyes wide and terrified. He knew this day might come, but somehow he had still let himself hope it wouldn’t. “Sarina -“

“We need to go to the ships.” She pulled them and they ran through the open fields, huddled together and not looking around them to see the flames and crumblings buildings. There was no time for that. They needed to get to the launch area.

A running woman hit them and Garak lost hold of Julian's hand, who was pushed into a mob going to the other direction.

"Julian!" Garak tried to reach him desperately in the middle of the human avalanche, pushing people aside and elbowing them out of his way.

Julian tried to push through people, eventually shoving them out of the way and ducking under their arms. Garak was at least hard to miss.

"Garak!" He screamed at him, and saw him push everybody until he grabbed him again, holding him close to his chest. Julian burrowed into him, pressing his face against one of his scales.

Garak held him much more firmly this time, practically half carrying him and Sarina. The roar of the explosions was deafening. “No one lets go. We go together or not at all!”

"Go where?" Julian was trying not to get hit by the screaming people around them, pressing himself closer to Garak’s chest and taking Sarina’s free hand in his own. Garak ducked quickly, cursing as debris hit him in the face, making a small gash on his cheek.

“To the ships! They are ready!” Sarina cried in a tight voice as she thrust forward. She shook her head and prayed that they would be quick enough. They had to be.

They saw people trying to break into the 5 shiny spaceships. They'd have to hurry to get a place in any of them.

"Let's go to Botany Bay! They will let me in, I'm Khan's advisor!" Garak knew the others would be so overcrowded it'd be a miracle if they made it to the sky at all.

Julian shouted uselessly as they shoved their way into the front of that line, his voice growing raw. He felt his heart rip apart as people around him got injured, with him unable to stop Garak's pace to tend to them. None of them would survive this.

"Go back! This is Khan's ship, only his closest advisors get in!" A guard was pushing people and pointing his gun at them, his hands shaking and his mouth twisted into a snarl. It seemed that in the face of possible death, augments were not cooler than humans.

“I am his closest advisor and these two are my family.” Garak said calmly as he pushed his way forward, expression cool and thoughtful. "Remember the conquest of Paris. I was there."

"I'll have someone consult Khan first."

"Better hurry, I'm sure he wants to leave soon." Garak managed to scoff, hiding the panic slowly building in his chest.

Soon they were led inside, where people looked around with fear, some of them crying. Sarina looked at them and raised her voice, keeping her tone even. "We'll have to go to the stasis pods once we leave atmosphere. I designed them so I can teach you how to use them." 

She saw behind her Garak talking with Khan, helping him enter his pod, while Julian assisting the injured ones.

“Julian will try and insist he go last so he can help as many injured people as possible.” Garak warned her, shooting him a quick look over his shoulder that was a mixture of pride and worry.

Sarina shook her head as she watched him, pursing her lips. That wouldn’t do at all. "I will be the last. I was one of the engineers assigned to life support, and I don't see any other of my workmates, so I'll have to operate the system alone."

“Of course. He won’t be happy about it, but I can make him see reason.” Garak gave her a reassuring smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. He wasn’t above physically putting Julian inside a pod if he needed to, no matter how angry his lover was when -- or where -- they woke up.

Julian was making sure a woman's wound was properly cleaned when he felt Garak's hand press against his shoulder. "It's time. Sarina won't get into stasis until we all are, so we can't keep her waiting. It wouldn't be safe."

“But I don’t want her to be alone.” Julian murmured as he was led away and toward the pods. He knew deep down someone had to be alone at the end. He just didn’t want it to be one of them. He shivered a little, glancing up at Garak and wondering if this would be the last time he saw that face or felt those scales against his skin.

"She'll sleep right at our side, Julian. Just enter and close your eyes. We'll wake up soon." Julian felt his gaze grow hazy as his pod activated, trying to stay awake as long as he could so he could keep watching Sarina and Garak. But eventually he fell asleep along with the rest.

What Julian was not expecting was waking up in a modern infirmary, a doctor in a bizarre uniform hovering over him.

"Wha-?"

Bones looked at him, frowning tightly as he furrowed his brow. "You're in the Enterprise, son. How do you feel?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We finally reached space! it was hard to wait and keep on schedule these last weeks, knowing the Enterprise crew was just some chapters away!
> 
> As always, we love comments, kudos, questions, everything! we put so much love in this story we can answer (as long as it's not spoilery) basically anything you may want to know! (please, tell us you want to know things, please)


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Waking up 200 years later and at the side of the most feared dictator of the XXth century, they have to wonder if there's a place in the universe for them after all. Only one way to prove they are not like Khan.
> 
> \--------
> 
> "There were studies on machines to tell if people are lying when we... When we went into hibernation. Don't you have something similar? You could test it on me and see what kind of person I am."
> 
> "Not machines, but I could see inside your head." Spock was pensive, frowning a bit as he considered the option.
> 
> “Inside our heads? How exactly can you do that?” Julian sounded equally curious and put off, eyes wide as he took a step back. They really weren’t on earth anymore. 
> 
> "We Vulcans can perform something called a mind meld. I'd be able to see what you've seen, think what you've thought."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Us searching for TOS transcripts so we can use the beginning of the episode exactly as it was? it's more likely than you think.

Stardate 3141.9 - August of 2267 - The Enterprise.

"Coming up on it fast, sir." The crewman watched as the unknown vessel came into view on the Enterprise’s range. 

"Are you certain of your sensor readings?" Captain Kirk looked at it with curiosity, shaking his head a few times as though it might change what was in front of him. No luck. It was unlike anything he'd seen before, and yet, it looked... Human. Old, but undoubtedly human.

Spock checked his readings once, twice. He didn't really need to, having memorised them already, but he knew Jim felt better when he did. He rose an eyebrow at the captain, knowing that they were thinking the same thing. The vessel was far too human looking. "Definitely a space vessel of some type."

"Origin?"

"Unknown. It could hardly be an Earth ship. There have been no flights into this sector for years." It was as if he had read his Captain's mind. Then again, it was true sometimes. They barely needed to touch now to know what the other was thinking.

Uhura tuned in, trying to get something out of the vacuum of space. The bridge filled with sounds. She quickly started moving her hands across the pattern, her gaze filling with curiosity. "I'm picking up a signal, sir. Captain, that's the old Morse code call signal."

"Thank you." His intuition had been right. It was from Earth, whatever it was. He gave Spock a mischevious smile, crossing his arms. "I thought you said it couldn't possibly be an Earth vessel."

"I fail to understand why it always gives you pleasure to see me proven wrong."

What a shameless liar Spock was. He knew it, and he enjoyed it too. Kirk smiled softly at him, eyes still fixed on the screen. "An emotional Earth weakness of mine. There it is. An old Earth vessel, similar to the DY-500 class." But so, so older than it. How was it possible for it to even be in space?

Spock checked the records and was surprised, something he was not used to experiencing. "Much older. DY-100 class, to be exact. Captain, the last such vessel was built centuries ago, back in the 1990s."

"Then it's a derelict, its signal left on automatic."

"Or an old Earth ship being used by aliens."

It wouldn't be the first time. They've seen already abandoned transports infected and changed. Kirk shivered at the thought, hoping this was more a case of lost equipment than some kind of fight.

"Weapons status."

An ensign answered from engineering. "Deflector shields on maximum. Phasers manned, sir."

Kirk nodded quickly. "Bioscanners report."

A short silence, and McCoy's voice filled the bridge. "Life science bioscanners are picking up heart beats from over there. Can't be human, though. They're too faint, and on average only four beats per minute."

Spock interrupted him, his scan finished. "Sensor reading, Captain. Some sort of equipment functioning on that vessel. No such vessel listed. Records of that period are fragmentary, however. The mid-1990s was the era of your last so-called World War."

"The Eugenics Wars." McCoy sounded tense. That had been the last dark era of humanity.

"Of course. Your attempt to improve the race through selective breeding."

Mccoy looked at Spock, mouth hanging open and eyes wide. The nerve of the man. How dare he, not only to judge humankind as a whole, but also to refuse to acknowledge he was part of that species too. "Now, wait a minute. Not our attempt, Mister Spock. A group of ambitious scientists. I'm sure you know the type. Devoted to logic, completely unemotional."

Kirk rolled his eyes, moving to stand between them. Most of the time he found their constant fights entertaining, but this was not the moment for them. "All right, all right, gentlemen. As you were. Rig for tractor beam, Helm. Lock onto that vessel."

They walked softly and carefully inside the derelict ship. While the ship certainly looked well built and advanced for its time, she had been floating in space for more than 200 years, so some damage was bound to be there.

Scotty inspected her, marveling at what he'd only seen in diagrams before. Such a beauty. Whoever had built her had not just used technology. They had put love in her as well. "Definitely Earth-type mechanism, sir. Twentieth century vessel. Old type atomic power. Bulky, solid. I think they used to call them transistor units. I'd love to tear this baby apart."

Marla, the archeologist, opened her eyes, realization suddenly hitting her. "Captain, it's a sleeper ship."

"Suspended animation." Kirk nodded, biting his lip as he considered the possibilities. Most of them were bad to worse. It really sounded like an old era relic. A time luckily gone forever.

"I've seen old photographs of this. Necessary because of the time involved in space travel until about the year 2018. It took years just to travel from one planet to another." She softly touched one of the pods, covered by a thin layer of dust.

"Is it possible they're still alive after centuries of travel?"

Mccoy shrugged., glancing over to the pods with pursed lips "It's theoretically possible. I've never heard of it being tested for this long a period." He'd heard the heartbeats, though. At least somebody was alive there. 

Kirk was fascinated, shaking his head as he glanced at the pods. "What a handsome group of people."

Suddenly an alarm made them jump, and McCoy called the captain, as several pods started to light up. "Jim, I have a new reading. The lights must have triggered some mechanism."

Marla called them over with wide eyes, looking at the pods. "Captain, look here."

A tall man, imposing and regal, a younger, gangly one, a blonde girl and a man with a tail started to change their vitals, as their beds lit up.

The first thing Julian saw when he woke up was a frowning man, with a blue shirt. He seemed to be talking, but he was unable to understand. He weakly tried to call for Sarina or Garak, but it seemed no words were coming out of his mouth. Sounds seemed to come from very far away, and he couldn’t focus on any face.

"Jim! We have two more here! A male and a female!"

"And a Cardassian! That's not possible!" A woman's voice reached Julian's ears. He felt that the lights were too bright, the sounds too loud. Everything hurt, his throat was sore and so, so dry.

Julian groaned and tried to shake his head, glancing at the woman and mouthing something as he tried to move closer to Garak. He needed to protect him. He had no idea where he was. Where were they, to begin with? This was not his house in England.

"Don't move, you're in shock. We will transport you. Jim, we need to transport these two and the Cardassian as well. Their vitals are erratic."

Julian gasped as the room changed in front of his eyes, and then he passed out again, the scene in front of him forgotten.

The next time Julian opened his eyes, he found himself staring into bright lights, but they didn't hurt that much this time. He took a shuddering breath.

"Where am I? Where are my friends? A... A blond girl, and an alien."

“You're on the starship Enterprise, son. How do you feel? You friends are here in sickbay, too.” The man in blue told him roughly, glancing down at him with a strange mix of curiosity and distrust. Right. Khan. If he had woken up, probably Khan had too, and he was sure it had not been a pleasant encounter.

"Are they alive? This was experimental, we didn't have time to refine the systems." His voice sounded hoarse and his throat hurt slightly with every word.

"12 died during the journey."

McCoy raised an eyebrow, glancing down at the man. He couldn’t help it, he was curious. This man was not as improved as Khan. He was definitely stronger and smarter than a normal human, yes, but gangly and softer, and probably not nearly as physically strong. He didn't look as dangerous or imposing. Neither did the girl on the other room, who had refused to talk unless her friends were safe.

“That’s... god. That's so many.” Julian closed his eyes, voice sounding broken. It could be an act, but so far McCoy didn’t think it was. Something about this man and the blonde girl struck him as authentic. Maybe he was just getting soft.

“Julian, are you all right?” It sounded hoarse, but that was a voice he'd recognize anywhere.

"Sarina!" He practically jumped out of his bed and hugged her, falling from the bed because his legs still refused to work properly. They hugged on the floor, both too weak to stand. "I was so worried! I was feeling so ill when I woke up I was afraid the life support had failed on all of us."

"I told you I'm a genius engineer." Her voice was weak but sweet.

“Of course I know you are, but even geniuses have to worry when all they’re working with is inferior technology and hope.”

"Hey! It is the state of the art ship... Or at least it was in 1997. what year is it?" She looked at McCoy with curiosity, trying to get up and failing, head still spinning a bit. She worried she’d get sick with how much the world seemed to be turning around her.

“A few hundred years after that. Scotty says it’s still not that bad though.”

"Who's Scotty? And I want Garak. The... You know, bulky, grey, full of scales. I don't know if humanity has encountered aliens yet." She crossed her arms, lips pressed into a thin line. She hoped they weren’t hurting him.

"More than encountered them, I daresay." Spock appeared behind her.

"The Cardassian is over there and...“ McCoy barely finished speaking when Julian half ran, half dragged himself across the room to the bed he was pointing at, sitting on the edge.

McCoy rolled his eyes as the human hugged the Cardassian too, shaking and muttering reassuring words. Really, he seemed to have been mixed by mistake with a golden retriever when his genes were resequenced. So different to the man that had tried to slash his throat just some minutes ago and was now in another room, isolated.

"They said there had been 12 casualties, I was so afraid!"

“Don’t worry dear, I’m hard to get rid of.” Garak assured him with a rough voice as he wrapped his arms around his back. He pressed their foreheads together.

"Interesting." Spock walked near them, observing. He'd been researching a bit after he found the name of the ship and the history of the missing augments, but this was not in his calculations. Certainly a cardassian was a surprise that defied all logic. Not just because of the period of time in which he should have gotten on Earth. But... no, there was no point in thinking about Cardassia now.

“What’s interesting?” Garak asked in a deceptively pleasant voice. He held Julian close as he met the Vulcan’s eyes. Clearly humanity had come a long way from when they fell asleep. No doubt they took advantage of what was left behind of Sarina’s engineering designs and Julian’s medical files, if this ship was populated by Vulcans.

"Even now, human-alien relationships are sometimes frowned upon. Yet you seemed to have grown quite close."

"Yet you don't seem like a pure Vulcan either, mister." Garak kept smiling. His smell was off, he could tell. Something a bit too human about it.

“An astute observation.” Spock allowed even as McCoy shot him a brief glare as his lips curled in distaste. Only he was allowed to tease Spock.

"I may come from the past, but I remember the planets my race visited."

“Of course. Cardassia gained warp technology long before Earth. How did you come to end up there?” And Cardassia had also... no, this was not the moment to bring that up.

Spock's voice and eyes gave them nothing. It was a duel of wits, both measuring each other.

"Just because we had warp doesn't mean ships never malfunctioned, I'm afraid. An emergency landing got me marooned, an ill fated accident."

“Naturally.” Spock’s voice was perfectly neutral.

“He crashed into my yard and I nursed him back to health.” Julian tried to contribute, already feeling nervous. He moved his hands back and forth over the sheets, smoothing down wrinkles he didn’t think anyone else could see. 

"And how did you manage to heal a man from a different species? I imagine you didn't have translators yet at that time."

“We didn’t, but he did and we were able to fix it well enough for us to communicate while I taught him English, and he taught me Kardassi. Oh, are we speaking English right now?”

"You say you nursed him?" McCoy looked interested, biting his lip as he took in the young man. He'd explain universal translators later.

“Yes, yes. He had a broken leg when he landed and several bruised ribs, and severe burns all over his body.”

"And how did you know what to do?"

“Well, I was a medical student for awhile before...” his voice broke, shoulders shaking a bit as the memories hit him. 

"Before the war started? Before you were called to do something else with your knowledge?" McCoy had read about the war. He knew what doctors had done then, and certainly knew what Augments had done.

"I took the hippocratic oath! I wouldn't... couldn't..." His eyes pleaded for McCoy to believe his words. And god damnit, for some reason he did. 

“Experiment on augments.”

"Yes. I refused to do genetically targeted weapons so I had to go into hiding."

“Very noble, if you’re telling the truth.”

"Why wouldn't I?" He felt his voice go up, blood boiling with indignation. How dare he? 

McCoy gave him a flat look, palms spread out. “How would I know? I’ve only been studying you for a few hours and you didn’t come with files.”

"Do you usually just assume anybody from the past will be a killer?" Julian got to his feet shakily, measuring McCoy up. He wondered if he would end up throwing up or fainting. Oh, how tired the doctor was growing of these augments.

“No, just the people traveling with men who tried to kill a bunch of humans. Company you keep and all.”

"Where else do you suggest we should have gone?" Sarina snapped in a heated voice, still sitting on the floor. "We were chased as animals for years, we lost everything!"

“Why were you being chased?” Spock sounded confused, one eyebrow raised. He glanced between them all with a touch of curiosity. 

"Oh, so you don't even know what really happened and yet assume we're the bad ones?" Julian felt his whole body tremble, and he had to close his eyes and take a few deep breaths to steady himself.

"Then enlighten me, please." Spock's tone was curious, calm. Focused.

"Humans were convinced all of us were evil and had the power to take over. My childhood house was set on fire and I never saw my parents again, since having me around put them in danger. I’ve been hiding since I was 8. How about that for choosing your company, doctor McCoy?" Sarina looked at them with defiance in her eyes, as she slowly realised that she wouldn't see her parents again anyway.

Julian turned and his eyes shone. He was starting to realize he wouldn't see anybody from his previous life again. Every friend he ever almost had was lost to him. "We were on the run and the only safe place was with the augments. I tried to stay as a rural doctor but the military wanted me. Every city we tried to settle in, we ended up having to run for our lives. We lost everything."

“I see. That is illogical. If you are augmented, that means you have heightened cognitive function and memory, correct? I assume that would be helpful as a doctor rather than harmful.” Spock sounded less judgmental than doctor McCoy.

"Yes, except when they want to find you and force you to experiment on people, or be experimented on. And many people didn't accept me either. A town I used to visit to tend wounded and ill people sold me out. They knew me for years and still sold me out."

Garak interceded, voice as even and calm as the Vulcan. "Excuse me, mister Spock. Your species is three times as strong as a human, isn't it? If you had 5 guns pointed at you, would your strength just be enough to get out of the situation?"

Spock blinked a few times and then looked thoughtful. “No, not unless the gunmen were particularly unskilled. I would likely need to use strategy as well.”

"Excuse me for saying it, but it's easy to have an opinion about a situation you haven't been present, sir. We all are war strategist behind a desk." Julian's tone was sharp, arms crossed tightly against his chest. He closed his eyes and hoped he never saw a gun again. 

Spock nodded, conceding it to them. Yes, he knew about people talking about what they've not been through, and how hurtful that could be. “Of course. I apologize. I was strictly thinking of it as a hypothetical. I simply find their desire to experiment on you without permission illogical. The net loss of hunting you versus what you could provide as a Doctor seems obvious.”

Julian nodded at Spock's admission, relaxing a bit. In his world, it was not usual to find someone agree with logic anymore.

“I see. How perplexing. I believe you will not encounter that problem here, Mr. Bashir and Ms. Douglas. For all his illogicality, the captain is quite fair, and rights have been extended to cover all sentient life, not just humans.”

"Do the captain know already we are not... Quite human? What will he do with us?"

“He has been informed. I don’t yet know of his decision.”

Sarina looked up from the floor, giving the man a small, tense smile. "We could work. Our talents are certainly useful. We can learn."

Spock raised an eyebrow, expression growing thoughtful. “That certainly sounds promising. Do you think you would be able to adjust to our technology quickly enough to do so?”

She grinned brightly then, eyes flashing with confidence. "I was an engineer, I helped design Botany Bay's life support system. I'm certain I'll be able to understand your systems soon."

"And I was designing better systems for injury treatment." Julian started to move his hands through the air, before remembering he was not in Australia anymore. He couldn't just be himself now, arms spreading as if he was trying to catch something invisible as he drew patterns in the air only he and maybe Sarina could see. He forced himself to still his body.

“Show me.” McCoy walked him over to his equipment with a hint of a smile, handing him a padd. "You think you can write using one of these?"

Julian's eyes shone at that, eagerly taking the padd in his hands. "Well, you see, I prompted the production of cells by doing..." He started to write down formulas.

After several minutes of talking and observing, McCoy nodded over to Spock. “I don’t think he’s going to have any problems.”

"I also developed a bone regenerator technique. I'm afraid I only tried it once in somebody other than me, on Garak, but the results are certainly promising." He’d wanted to try it on the villagers, but he had been too afraid to risk it. He had always regretted not helping more.

“That is quite interesting. Take a look at this kid.” McCoy led him away, to where an injured red shirt laid. Garak smiled a little, feeling some of the tension in his shoulders ease. They had at least two crew members on their side.

Garak started to follow them, when Spock stopped him, softly but firmly. “Maybe that’s true, but maybe Khan sent you to deceive people.”

Sarina got to her feet, furious, but still wobbling a bit. “Julian couldn’t trick anyone if he wanted to.”

They looked at each other in silence until Julian walked between them.

"There were studies on machines to tell if people are lying when we... When we went into hibernation. Don't you have something similar? You could test it on me and see what kind of person I am."

"Not machines, but I could see inside your head." Spock was pensive, frowning a bit as he considered the option.

“Inside our heads? How exactly can you do that?” Julian sounded equally curious and put off, eyes wide as he took a step back. They really weren’t on earth anymore. 

"We Vulcans can perform something called a mind meld. I'd be able to see what you've seen, think what you've thought. Some people find it invasive," he glanced at McCoy, who just snorted and rolled his eyes, "but it's a good way to prove what you're saying. Just your willingness to subject yourself to this would prove your honesty, since you won't be able to hide anything from me."

“Then I’m more than happy to commit to it.” Julian stood up and held his hands out, looking confident, or at least as confident as he could, considering a stranger was about to probe his mind.

"Very well. We'll give you quarters so you can rest and then talk to the captain about the procedure. He certainly is looking forward to meeting you."

“Thank you. Would it be possible for us to stay together for now?” Garak asked as he moved closer to both of them.

"I'll see to it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wait... why is it not possible to have a Cardassian on a ship?
> 
> Comments and kudos won't make us hurry publishing chapters, but certainly will ensure we're happy and keep 'em coming!


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The future seems too good to be true. Can they really relax and think war and desolation are behind them?

Julian kept grinning and jotting down notes as they were escorted out of the room, with Garak rolling his eyes as he helped him navigate. McCoy had given him some medical pads and everything was all new and different. Julian couldn’t believe it. 

"Dear, you're in a spaceship, you could look around a bit!"

“Oh, but this is so exciting. The medical discoveries they have made since we went in the pods - I can hardly understand them. And, and, the species! I can't believe this. Their physiology... it is all amazing.”

"But we can read later, first enjoy the view!" Sarina ran to one of the viewports, gasping at the sight. She smiled brightly, watching as her handiwork came into view. "Look, I can see my baby ship from the windows! Look at my girl, she looks so small."

Julian followed her, glancing at the ship with a small smile. "I wonder what the engineers think of our little one."

"Yours? Any chance you were the ones who built her, lads?" Scotty almost jumped onto the viewport with them. He'd been really hoping one of the new arrivals had been involved in the construction.

Julian shook his head, gaze dropping back to his medical pads. "No, not me, but Sarina here was. I'm just a doctor."

"How old are you?" Scotty didn't seem judging, just curious.

"I'm 19 and Julian is 22." She leaned on the wall, crossing her arms in her most cocky attitude. A bit of showing off had always been something she enjoyed. “Impressed?”

"It shows a very creative way of solving problems, considering your limitations. Primitive, but interesting."

"Primitive?" She looked outraged, and her hand dramatically flew to her chest as if she just had been stabbed.

“Hey, I’m 200 years younger than you, remember? Everything you've done is so old school now.”

She smiled, still feeling confident that her work was perfect, if limited given earth’s lack of ships. "You certainly don't look a day older than 150." 

Julian snorted at that before he could stop himself, but Scotty just laughed, delighted. 

“No, you two look like you should still be at ta academy.”

"We would, if we hadn't been expelled from all places. Anyway, now that is all in the past, in a very literal way."

“Hey, shush, I was just being complimented, Julian.” She poked him in the chest, shaking her head as she made a pinched expression. 

Scotty laughed at her wits, shaking his head. He definitely wanted her in his team. "How did you solve the problem of keeping the hearts beating and yet not needing water or food? Most sleeper ships were a failure from what I read."

"Oh, well, think of it this way, if you reduce the speed of..."

Sarina walked with Scotty, talking with him all the way to their quarters after that, giving details more and more complex.

Julian stayed close to Garak's side, holding his arm and trying to keep him from feeling too suspicious or anxious in the narrow halls.

"I guess... We really are in a new, different world, aren't we?"

“I think we are. Now we just have to find out how we fit in it.” Would this ship really need a cardassian? They were not the most amicable creatures of the galaxy when he went to stasis, and the looks he’d gotten since waking up ...

“Again.”

"Well, I think I'd fit in engineering, don't you think, mister Scott?" Sarina playfully bumped his side. She already liked him and his blunt, no nonsense ways. "I'm sure I could learn to operate this dilithium engines easily."

“I think you could. I hope the three of you pass Mr. Spock’s test. I could use the help.”

"Wait, he'll probe all of us?" Sarina knew Garak would want to have his thoughts left alone, even if he knew he was in no position to say no.

“Of course. It’s standard procedure when we awake centuries old survivors of Earth’s last major war.” Scotty didn't meet their eyes.

"Yet somehow I doubt Khan will submit himself to those tests, so I'm not sure you're being completely honest." Garak knew when someone was lying, and that was an especially bad lie.

“Garak!” Julian cried, not able to hide his frustration. They didn’t need to make this worse.

"I'm just pointing out they are saying the 'standard procedure' while it is something they won't actually be able to enforce, so they are trying to con us into doing it. That way, they can still learn about our  _ leader _ even if he refuses to go through it."

"The Cardassian has a point, and I apologise." Spock nodded at him. He’d been at their side, silently assessing them. "I won't force anybody to do anything against their wishes."

“We will do it willingly either way. We also know this is your ship.”  _ At least two of us will _ , Julian decided not to add.

Sarina raised an eyebrow at Julian, just keeping her mouth shut. He wasn’t known for following the rules so closely.

"I won't force those of you who don't want to. I respect privacy first and foremost." 

The Vulcan didn't seem mad or thrown by Garak's reaction. As far as the cardassian remembered, the mind meld was considered a forbidden technique when he left Cardassia, so Garak was curious about what else had changed. It had taken him months of careful research to even learn the term when he was stationed there.

“Of course. Thank you, first officer. I can only hope the rest of the crew shares your beliefs there.”

"And if they don't, they certainly can't force me to perform the meld against my will."

Julian decided he liked that man. He seemed fair and bent on finding the truth, not to fabricate one to his liking. Perhaps 200 years had really changed things out there.

When they arrived at their room, Spock entered a code, making sure his guests saw it, so they knew they could come and go. They were not prisoners, at least not yet. "Here are your quarters, I hope you can rest until the captain comes to see you."

“Thank you, they look quite comfortable.” Garak smiled thinly until he left. Once the door closed, the cardassian started searching, turning all the room upside down as he covered every corner. "There has to be a hidden bug somewhere. Cameras, something. I won't believe they are not about to survey us."

"Garak, I think you're being a little paranoid." Julian sighed as he sat at the edge of one of the beds, arms wrapped around his chest. It was good to be on a bed again. Not as comfortable as the ones in Australia, but certainly better than the ones of the ships.

"It's not being paranoid when you know what people think of Cardassians. Or what they used to."

"I imagine it was similar to what they thought of us?" Julian asked as he raised an eyebrow. Garak finally sat next to him, gaze still narrowed at the wall as though he expected a camera to suddenly jump out at them. 

"We thought you were a bit more than half evolved, to be honest. I'm surprised to see you in space."

"I meant what other humans thought of augments, but thank you, Garak. Makes me feel wonderful about our relationship." Julian's voice was dry, the hurt obvious as he turned his gaze away from Garak sharply.

"I never said you were like a pet like your peers, love."

"Nonetheless, I don't appreciate you referring to us like that."

Garak gave him a quick glance and stood up, continuing his search. "Oh, dear, I'm only saying that's how your species was regarded all around the quadrant. You had not yet achieved warp when I fell on your planet, don't forget it."

"I couldn't, you were quite appalled at discovering humans were in space."

"Well, I was not expecting to wake up two centuries later."

"No, no, and now you're upset humans have evolved technologically enough to match your own species. How embarrassing for Cardassia." He gave a small smile, a peace offering as he held a hand out. Garak took it, squeezing his own.

"Well, maybe now they evolved, people won’t be so afraid of us." Sarina wondered as she leaned back against the bed.

"Hopefully so, I'd like to be something more than a side show or a prisoner this time. I certainly want to do medicine again."

"The doctor seemed very interested in you. Maybe I should feel jealous." Garak smiled, gaze twinkling as he came to sit at Julian’s side. 

"In me? You think?" Julian blinked a few times, looking completely taken aback. He opened and closed his mouth, as though in shock. "I mean, I-I won't lie, I was rather excited that he wanted to look at my research, but he didn't strike me as... I didn't realize he was... Oh god, do you think I made him think I...?"

"He's joking, Julian." Sarina rolled her eyes as she punched him on the shoulder, her laughter ringing out across the room. "But I certainly hope Mr. Scott found my knowledge useful, since I  _ so _ need to put my hands on those dilithium crystals."

“I think he’s quite impressed with you. You’ll be allowed to join the engineering crew for sure.” Julian gave her a half hug, smiling a little more openly as he imagined it. 200 years in the future, working on new technology. It was perfect for her. 

"And you, Garak? Where will you fit? Remember you promised not to leave us alone." Sarina pushed him until they three fell on the floor, laughing.

"I think I would do quite well in security, but I fear it might take this Federation a bit longer to trust me than it does with the two of you."

"Why? were you space lizards not that nice to your neighbors?" Sarina giggled loudly, spreading her arms out on the floor. She felt this was where she'd finally belong. With the stars.

"Let's just say we were more concerned with our own survival than with making friends."  _ And that I may have stolen certain state secrets in my time _ , he added internally.

"Lots of things could have changed in two centuries." Julian frowned as he ran a hand over the ridges along Garak’s wrist.

"Not so much, considering how they looked at me. They certainly weren't expecting me."

"Well, you'll have to show them you're not the same as other cardassians, then. You made friends with us, after all."

"Let's hope that's enough for them."

Their musings were interrupted by a chime in the door, and they finally found themselves looking at the captain of the ship.

Julian swallowed as he stood in the doorway, moving his hands back and forth and stuttering. He had gone, by instinct, to open it manually, and now felt extremely embarrassed as they were face to face, a bit too close to be polite.

"At ease. I heard you are a doctor."

Julian liked his smile almost immediately. This man was not looking at him with hate or prejudice. He was a bit shorter than him, a bit bulkier, had amazing hair, and certainly had a charisma that could match Khan's, but without the cruelty, the hurt that had turned him into what he was. How two men could be so similar, and yet their circumstances turned them both into such different people.

"Yes, yes I am. Or, or, I was, I suppose medical school must be very different now. I have two hundred years to catch on." Julian smiled apologetically, taking a few steps back to give the captain some breathing room. 

"I've no idea, perhaps you should ask Bones about that, get a crash course."

"Bones?"

"The good doctor. I believe you all met him earlier? He's grumpy, but he's a good man." Kirk smiled warmly, a look of fondness coming into his eyes.

"Oh, oh, yes. I just didn't know he was called like that. Bones McCoy? such a weird name. Or, not, not trying to be rude, perhaps that's a normal name now."

Behind him both Sarina and Garak snorted, Garak resisting the urge to chide his young lover. So much for the augmented intelligence.

Kirk laughed, shaking his head as he gave him a small smile. This fellow didn't seem so dangerous, and Bones had been right when he described him as a bit of a puppy, far too eager and bound to get hair over furniture if left alone, maybe even chew on some chairs. "No, Bones is a nickname."

"Oh, oh. I... well, it seems obvious now you say it, I figured names could have changed so much in two centuries it was not impossible. I'm, um, I'm Julian." He stretched his hand awkwardly.

"Captain James T. Kirk. Maybe soon you'll prove you can call me Jim." Kirk shook his hand and gave him a quick nod. Julian took a step back, lightly shoving Garak forward.

"And I'm Garak, at your service, captain, although I wonder what I simple man like me will be able to do in this new century."

"If a simple man like you survived on pre warp Earth, I'm gonna bet you have plenty to offer."

"I hope you'll find my ability to stay alive useful for this ship, should we be allowed to stay. It's not as if we even know the political map of the galaxy anymore."

"No, but we can get you all caught up, once you feel up to it. Things have changed quite a bit since we got warp."

"I imagine they have. I heard us been called survivors of the last war? So there were no more incidents in two centuries?" Garak certainly was skeptical. He'd seen humans, after all. They made cardassians seem like almost innocent and peaceful creatures.

“Well, not for Earth. We’ve been pretty peaceful, at least with our own species.”

"Surprising, considering what I saw in my year there."

“That wasn’t our best time.” Kirk admitted with a wince, shaking his head a bit. 

"And yet you managed to produce outstanding individuals during those dark ages." He looked at his friends, pride washing over him as he took them in.

“Luckily for us. And many more since.” Kirk assured him, a look of pride coming into his own eyes. He glanced at the three of them, expression growing more serious. “I expect Spock told you about the mind meld?”

"Yes, I'm surprised such techniques are public domain now."

“Things have changed. It’s rare we use them this way but... this is a rare situation.”

"How so?" Julian's eyes widened, hands falling to the side. Was their presence not wanted after all? He surely hoped Khan had not made them unwanted so soon.

“We don’t usually find people from so far in the past.”

"We were not expecting to sleep so long, either. We were just trying to hide from the bombings. There was nowhere else to go."

“Of course, I’m glad you all survived. The bombings, well... not many did, according to the historical records. Spock and I have been going through them.”

"We were there. I know how many must have died, since I knew how many we were and how many ships we had."

This man was definitely different to Khan. While their leader was already showing his true colors, this group really gave Kirk the impression they were just refugees, people with no place in the universe nor the ability to create one for themselves.

“I’m sorry for your loss.” Kirk told them softly.

"Thank you." Julian gave him a weak smile, already calculating in his head how many people had died when they left.

"At least 2452, Julian. That's how many must have been unable to board the escape ships." Sarina knew what he was thinking.

“Of course.” Julian agreed softly as he slumped back against the wall. So many casualties and for what? Was this future really the paradise it was trying so hard to convince them it was?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos are love!
> 
> They already arrived to space, soon there will be a lot of action...


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the wake of Khan's attempt to seize the Enterprise, Julian and Sarina are faced with a choice: mindmeld or follow Khan.
> 
> And Kirk and Spock are keeping some information hidden from Garak. Something happened to Cardassia...
> 
> \--------  
> "Relax, close your eyes." Spock softly touched Julian's face, and the human relaxed. "My mind to your mind, my thoughts to your thoughts."
> 
> Julian took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He wondered what Spock was seeing.

Julian and Sarina were so excited when Spock informed them he’d be melding with them the next day, Garak couldn't help rolling his eyes at their enthusiasm. After a week in almost isolation, and with Khan trying to take over the ship, they were ready to start walking the walls. After all, this man would decide whether they'd be sent with Khan to his new home or be allowed to stay.

Julian sat against the wall, arms crossed as he watched Garak. He smiled eagerly, not quite able to keep his excitement down even in the face of Garak’s cynicism. “We could... we can stay here, once we prove we’re not dangerous.”

"It's not as if we have somewhere else to go. I don't know what's happening in my homeland. Knowing Cardassian politics, nothing good." Garak shook his head, closing his eyes as he let the feeling wash on him. He believed the English word for it was homesick.

“Hopefully we’ll find out.” Julian said softly as he laid back on the bed, brushing his fingertips along the scales on Garak’s wrists. He sighed a bit. After what Khan had done, their access to files had been severely restricted.

"Do you think we'll see the Vulcan thoughts when he sees ours?" Sarina sounded hopeful, though there was a slight apprehension in her voice. After all, God knows what the Vulcan might have seen. 

“It didn’t sound like it. Vulcans are a little too private for that.” Garak muttered in a low voice, tutting a little as he took Julian’s hand more firmly in his own. 

"Oh, like Cardassians, then."

Garak gave Julian a sharp look. Julian smiled as angelically as possible, until both he and Sarina burst into a fit of laughter.

"I'm just pointing out the obvious, Julian, you don’t need to be insulting." He leaned over him, faking an offended look, hugging his back with fondness. Their hands were still entwined, fingers linking together.

“Of course. As always.” Julian chimed in with a smile, tilting his head to the right a bit so Garak could rest his head in his shoulder. 

"I'd like to be an engineer here. I've been reading the manuals, the advancements are incredible. I'll be happy to let him scramble my mind in exchange of getting my hands on those engines." Sarina leaned over them, placing her head on Garak's lap as she talked, eyes lost already on her fantasies.

“You’d be good at that, I’m sure it won’t take you more than a few days to catch up with all the other engineers.” Garak assured her, smiling a little more softly now.

"I hope. I already think the warp system is all wrong. We should get it from 0 to 10, not just keep adding and adding numbers. Warp 13? Come on! Infinite should be 10, no movement 0, and the ramp should be exponential." She frowned thoughtfully, shaking her head in dismay as she considered all the changes they needed to make. Society had only come so far after all. 

“Already making advancements? You really are a genius.” Julian murmured as he turned around suddenly so he was pressing his head against Garak’s shoulder instead of the other way around. 

"We all three are." She snuggled up to Julian’s side, gaze soft even though he couldn’t see it. "Think this era will be kinder to genius than ours?"

“Maybe for the two of you. But I did some reading, it doesn’t seem like they want augmented doctors. And certainly I doubt Khan is helping our case.”

"I think the grumpy doctor may have a soft spot for you. He seemed to like your research." Garak touched his cheek tenderly. He knew the young man needed someone to finally accept him as he was, someone outside their little family.

“You think? I hope but — hoping usually gets us in trouble.” Julian leaned into the touch, closing his eyes as he finally pulled his head away from Garak’s shoulder. 

"I think this captain may like trouble."

“He seemed like the type.” Julian grinned more fully this, sliding back on the bed so he could stretch his legs out. 

"Maybe your problem was that you were both born too early. Good thing you're smart enough to find a solution even to that."

“Yes, yes. We’re finally where we belong.” Sarina smiled brightly as she raised a hand up to the sky. Her eyes shone brightly, smile more incandescent than Garak had ever seen it before. “Among the stars.”

The next morning they were greeted by Spock, impassive expression and hands behind his back. If he had any hesitation about what he was going to do, it didn’t show. But then, Garak had never known a Vulcan to show much of anything. 

"I hope you're ready for the meld. It won't be painful, although some have reported headaches afterwards."

“We’re ready.” Julian volunteered offering his hand, then thinking better, he leaned his head in a bit. When Spock raised an eyebrow, he flushed but stood firm, not wanting to seem even more ridiculous than usual. “How does this work?”

"Relax, close your eyes." He softly touched Julian's face, and the human relaxed. "My mind to your mind, my thoughts to your thoughts."

Garak inhaled sharply and waited, fingers clenched right against their sheets.

Julian took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He wondered what Spock was seeing.

Julian saw flashes of Spock's youth. A child that was different, bullied for not being enough of a Vulcan, not enough of a human.

Julian felt like he could relate a little. He was bullied for the same reasons, before and after. And then he found out what his parents did to him.

He saw Spock's father, distant, but then his mother, kind and loving. He wished his own mother had been like that. He wouldn't have gone through the augmentation with a mother so ready to fight for him. Amanda got into fights in these memories, shouting in the face of Vulcans, not caring if they called her emotional as long as that protected her children.

He saw Spock as a teenager, training and studying a whole host of subjects Julian had never even heard of, felt how he was trying to control his fear and turn it into focus, to get better, to be accepted, to find his place...

And then he saw him awkwardly meeting a new captain, a blonde, enthusiastic man, who introduced himself as Jim instead of going by his last name. He felt the small hope of maybe belonging somewhere at last.

Julian smiled at that, as memories of their many adventures and discoveries coming across his mind, warm feelings that seemed alien to that mind that was sharing with him, too human for it to understand.

He felt a hand brushing his, and then the awkward explanation coming out of Spock's mind, telling Jim what that actually meant for his culture, fearing rejection only to see his smile growing wider, to see the captain take his hand more boldly, looking at him in a way nobody had before, only to then pull him closer and...

Julian blinked a bit as he felt Spock pulling away, his mind suddenly empty. His head hurt a bit but... “That was incredible!”

"I'm afraid some of my own thoughts may have leaked into your own mind I hope they were not distressing."

“No, no. They were incredible. You are... oh, it was fascinating. You’re fascinating.”

"Your memories were painful. I'm sorry you had to live that kind of life, and now I understand why you had no other choice."

Julian let out a breath he was not aware he was holding, shoulders slumping in relief. “Thank you. I hope you see that we’re no threat to you. We just want a chance to live our lives like everyone else.”

"And here if you're as hardworking and honest as I saw in your mind, you'll have that chance. Now, Sarina, want me to meld with you?"

“I thought you’d never ask, mister Spock.” Sarina stepped forward as Julian sat on the chair next to Garak, taking his hand into his own and squeezing it softly. She pulled her hair back so there was nothing in Spock’s way as he pressed his fingers against her cheeks.

She too saw the images of his childhood, and felt his feelings for the captain. She wondered if he was conscious of all the memories that she was seeing, if such a reserved man was sharing himself so willingly. He saw Spock as a young boy, all the loss in his life, the feeling of being different, too much, too little, never enough, until he met...

At the end Spock looked at her with the same calm understanding as before. “You have lost much.”

“So have you.”

“So have I, indeed.”

"Now you see I didn't lie when I told you what happened to me." Sarina looked at him serenely, taking a step back as she felt a sense of calm rush over her. They had done all they could. .

“No, you did not. Neither of you did.” Spock glanced at Garak, gaze thoughtful. He was not surprised he wasn’t walking to volunteer for the meld. In fact, he’d been counting on that, given the nature of his species.

"We didn't ask to have this life."

“No, you did not. Those choices were taken from you because of something neither of you could help.”

"What about our choices now? I imagine you won't go easy with Khan, and with good reason." Garak said in a cool voice, pulling them both closer to him. They had heard he was to be exiled to a remote planet and he wouldn’t allow that for his friends.

“No. We won't. You have choices. If you choose to stay with Khan, you will face the same punishment as him and those loyal to him. If you do not, we shall make you Federation citizens.”

"We'd really like that second option." Garak was sure whatever Khan would face in his brave new world, it was not the fate he wanted for either of them.

“Yes, I think we’re all in agreement there. As you saw, we never agreed with Khan’s goals. If we’d had the choice...” Julian trailed off, biting his lip. He never wanted to be in a war in the first place, to live in a world so harsh. 

Spock looked at Kirk, who gave a short nod. Then he smiled, tilting his head at them. "I think Bones will be happy to have a new assistant, and I heard Scotty say good things about Sarina. Now, mister Garak, I don't quite know where you'd like to fit."

“I have a wide array of talents that I think you’d find quite useful, Captain.”

Julian didn't even let Kirk answer, cutting them off when his excitement was too much to hear. Any other captain would probably find him annoying, but then again, Jim was a different kind of man. “You’re going to let me practice medicine?! And here, in this ship?”

"I don't think Bones wouldn't let us live if we didn't. He's been searching for volunteers to try your regeneration techniques already." Kirk turned to Garak, frowning a bit though there was no anger in his gaze, just a touch of wariness. "I'm afraid dealing with Khan has me tired of men with a nebulous array of talents. I'd like you to be a bit less mysterious and a bit more sharing."

“Well, I’m a wonderful tailor and cook, for one thing. And I worked in intelligence. Some things like hacking I might have to catch up on, but I imagine the technique for gathering information hasn’t changed much. I was stationed in Vulcan, Romulus and Andoria before making what my homeland would call a mistake. I also have quite the skill for botany, if your Federation wants you to study plant samples.”

Julian tried his best to stay impassive at the intelligence bit, but some of it must have been obvious as Spock arched an eyebrow and gave them a half smile. Julian tried to hide a snicker behind his hand. "It seems your friend here is surprised of at least one of your skills."

Garak gave Julian an apologetic smile that Julian didn’t buy for one minute. “I fear that telling him about certain past activities of mine could have made him more of a target than he already was.”

“You were mad when I said you were a spy.” He pointed at him in a dramatic gesture, still trying not to laugh. 

"Because it's not the same being intelligence in your horrible, flashy spies movies." Garak put on a face of mock horror, pressing a hand against his chest. “I’d never wear those suits, for starters.”

“Is that why you couldn’t appreciate Bond? It wasn’t realistic enough for you?” Julian was laughing openly now, relief making him be almost out of breath. He’d already been preparing himself mentally to end his life on a remote planet.

"Boys, if you can come back to reality." Sarina cleared her throat, kicking Julian in the ankle lightly. He scowled at her, but dutifully turner his attention back to the Captain.

“Right, yes. We’ll be allowed to join your crew then?”

"I think you could use some more days to catch up with the technology and then we can start." Spock gave a quick nod, expression still subdued.

“Fantastic. Are there any more manuals we can study? I don’t want to be behind. I've already started with warp theory but some things I just can't make sense of.” Sarina gave them a hopeful smile, eyes bright as she leaned in. They had had a very restricted access to information after Khan’s incident, and she felt so behind.

"You can access them all through the computer. Your permissions have been cleared now."

“Wonderful! Hopefully we can catch up well enough to be of some use.”

When they left, Kirk turned to Spock, gaze tight as he considered their new friends. "What do you think? I don't quite trust the Cardassian. Does he already know what happened to his planet?"

“He doesn’t yet, that I know of. It could create tension. For now those archives are still encrypted, until we decide he’s in the right mental place to know.”

"Tension is certainly one. way of describing it. I think devastating may be the right word."

"Yes, you're right, Jim. He may not be able to recover from it." Spock shook his head, voice soft and, if one knew Spock well enough, deeply saddened. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun dun dun... Aghhh, it's so hard not spilling the beans about what happened to Cardassia!
> 
> Comments and kudos make us so, so happy!


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their first day of work is interrupted by the discovery of what happened to Cardassia.
> 
> \------------  
> "First I'd like to know a bit more about yourself. You may have to forgive me, but I believe in having a close bond with all my crewmates."
> 
> “Of course. I’ve gathered that your Federation values fellowship dearly.” Garak said in a calm voice, smiling just a bit too pleasantly. He pressed his hands together. “What would you like to know?”
> 
> "First, how did you end up on Earth." Kirk raised an eyebrow, shaking his head in disbelief. A Cardassian on earth decades before first contact. It was hard to believe. 
> 
> “I was sent on a reconnaissance mission to gather information about Khan. Sadly my ship crashed closer to England than Australia.”
> 
> "I can hardly imagine Cardassia being interested in a pre-warp planet."
> 
> “Maybe not, but they were interested in getting rid of loyal citizens who spoke out against the military, and it seems a pre-warp planet is a great place to dispose of the garbage. Give them a faulty ship and you’ll never have to worry about them again.”
> 
> "Now that sounds a bit more sincere."

Sarina looked at the warp engine with wide eyes once she was finally cleared for duty. She clasped her hands together, just barely keeping from squealing in excitement. "This is even more amazing than in the blueprints."

“You think? I was hoping you’d say that.” Scotty grinned brightly, sucking in a deep breath. He had yet to meet an engineer not impressed by the enterprise. "My girl is beautiful, isn't she?"

"Gorgeous."

Sarina took a closer look, gaze thoughtful as she felt her mind memorize the machinery. She touched it softly, feeling the engine  _ alive _ under her fingers.

"So, what will I do? Tell me I won't be assigned to mop the floor."

“With a brain like yours? Of course not. I mean to make you an official junior engineer. Thought you could start as my assistant, until you get the layout down.”

"I already memorized the layout." She leaned on a rail, cocky expression on her face as she smirked a bit.

“Of course you did. Then how about helping me with the wiring here?” 

He handed her a few tools and gave her a challenging smile. If she wanted to show off, he'll show her how warp was something to take seriously.

"Oh, I... I never saw tools like these. I may need... 5 minutes."

“I’ll time you.” Scotty started tapping his watch.

"Oh, um... Well, watch me." She slid under the console, noticing maybe this time her mouth had got her into trouble.

Scotty watched her from above as she examined the tools, wrinkling her nose a bit.

"What's the problem, laddie?"

“They’re just more advanced than ours. But I’ll figure it out.”

"You have 3 minutes left."

“And I’ll figure it out.” Sarina looked more determined now, deciding to focus her energy on what seemed like a screwdriver.

She cut a cable and all the lights went down. She felt her face bright red, with some loose strands falling on it. "Seems it wasn't a screwdriver after all?"

“Nope, not quite. Laser cutter.” Scotty reconnected some wires to bypass the disaster she had made. He’d make her fix it later, that for sure.

"Would have figured it sooner or later."

“I’m sure. But how about we sit down and study the tools first and  _ then _ you can actually use them?” Scotty raised an eyebrow, not quite able to keep the amusement out of his voice. 

"That may actually a smart idea." She finally emerged from under the console, ears red.

“Don’t be embarrassed. I’ve had ensigns do worse on their first day.”

"I've been hiding my brain for years, it seems it got rusty with the lack of use." She tied her hair back with an annoyed gesture, thinking about cutting it short so it wouldn't get into the way next time.

“I don’t think so. Now let’s start with the basics.” Scotty went over a few tools, Sarina eagerly nodding along and watching his demonstrations.

"Who came out with this... Abomination? This can't possibly be useful." She looked at the tool with disgust.

“It’s pretty useful when you aim it right. Here, I’ll show you.”

"Useful, perhaps, but it looks horrible and so not ergonomic."

“Nah, it isn’t that so much. But yes, I've been thinking about redesigning it, you could help me. Here, try this wrench.”

"Now this one I like." She weighed it a bit in her hand, feeling the cool metal against her palm. "You could kill somebody with one of these."

Scotty raised an eyebrow, shaking his head a bit as he took a step back. He wouldn’t be telling the rest of the crew about that one. “Well, I guess that’s good to know if I ever piss anyone off. Now, think you gotta enough understandin’ to try helping me with this bit here?”

"I think I do. So, where should I start?"

“With these wires here. I want you to fix them righ’ this time.”

"Which I guess I shouldn't attack with the laser cutter, right."

Garak smiled brightly at Kirk from across the table, expression perfectly pleasant and congenial. 

“So Captain, what kind of intelligence do you want me to gather?”

"First I'd like to know a bit more about yourself. You may have to forgive me, but I believe in having a close bond with all my crewmates."

“Of course. I’ve gathered that your Federation values fellowship dearly.” Garak said in a calm voice, smiling just a bit too pleasantly. He pressed his hands together. “What would you like to know?”

"First, how did you end up on Earth." Kirk raised an eyebrow, shaking his head in disbelief. A Cardassian on earth decades before first contact. It was hard to believe. 

“I was sent on a reconnaissance mission to gather information about Khan. Sadly my ship crashed closer to England than Australia.”

"I can hardly imagine Cardassia being interested in a pre-warp planet."

“Maybe not, but they were interested in getting rid of loyal citizens who spoke out against the military, and it seems a pre-warp planet is a great place to dispose of the garbage. Give them a faulty ship and you’ll never have to worry about them again.”

"Now that sounds a bit more sincere."

“Does it? How curious.” Garak shrugged a bit, leaning back against his chair. He continued, a touch of bitterness in his voice. “I was supposed to die, I imagine, considering the ship was rigged and had a leak when entering the atmosphere, but I’ve always had a way of surviving the worst of circumstances.”

"Even if that meant banding with the most unwanted humans?"

“Even then. Besides, if the rest of humanity couldn’t see their worth, that was hardly my problem.”

Kirk could feel how uneasy he was, telling the truth, or at least part of it. But then again, what use did having secrets 200 years old had?

"Wouldn't it had been smarter for you to find people in the military, perhaps?"

“Possibly, but I didn’t find so much as I was found.”

"And I imagine that tail didn't make you the most popular man anyway."

"No, it turned most people besides Julian and Sarina off. Humans of that era really were short-sighted."

"Speaking of them. What is your relationship, exactly?"

Garak wondered if there was prejudice in his question. No, he decided. That man was simply curious.

"Julian is my mate. Our relationship developed over our time together on Earth. Sarina is family to us both. She was the first person to accept us both as we are." 

"From what I heard about that time period, they really must be one of a kind."

"Yes, yes, Julian thought I was a poor man someone had experimented on, at first."

"Honest mistake, though I really hope he didn't want to take you as a pet. So. Ever fired a laser, mister Garak?"

Garak's smile was nasty. If Jim wanted to see his true colors, well, this was the moment for him to decide what to do. "Many times, I'm afraid. I prefer a refined interrogation, but needs must."

"I heard about the Cardassian interrogation methods. I hope I'm not about to give asylum to a sadist." Kirk's eyes got hard as he leaned in, his own hands steepled. His lips were pressed into a thin line, any trace of warmth gone. 

"No, not especially. I never enjoyed anything I had to, and if possible I preferred to use gentler methods. Hurting the body is just so... Unrefined. It only shows the interrogator has an underdeveloped mind."

"You may discover we prefer talking rather than hurting people in this era."

"I've heard that a thousand times." He'd heard that so many times, out of the mouth of the most brutal men he'd met. He’d heard his father say that many times.

"I hope you understand."

"Believe it or not, Captain, I far prefer talking as well."

"On that then we're in agreement. I do mean what I say."

"All leaders do. We tools reflect what they  _ do _ , not what they say."

Kirk actually grinned a bit at that. "I think we'll get along just fine."

"That I hope, since I quite like you, captain."

Julian looked at Bones nervously, tugging at the edge of his new uniform. He had never had a boss before, and much less had been so unprepared for a job. He was 100s of years out of practice. 

Julian was being uncharacteristically quiet as McCoy explained the development in antibiotic technology, gaze sharp and focused. “Son, you feeling alright?”

"Yes, yes. Fine. Perfect. I just need to understand everything."

"Yes, but you can blink  _ and _ understand." Not to mention breath. Bones feared the young man may just pass out via lack of oxygen.

“Well no, I still have to learn things. I’m not — really I’m not  _ that _ smart. And so many years have passed.”

"Still, your eyes will dry out and a fly will get inside your mouth if you don't change your expression. Really, I've seen deltan fishes more alive than you."

“I’ve never even seen a deltan fish! See, I don’t know half of what you’re talking about.” Julian huffed and looked petulant. He pulled at his sleeve again, feeling faintly ridiculous and a bit like a child. Some first impression he was making. “I’m probably a fool compared to your doctors.”

"No, but certainly you're still ignorant of several things. Traveling 100s of years into the future will do that to a man. Now did you read those books I suggested for you? What can you tell me about the Vulcan anatomy?"

“Well, I know... “ Julian listed off everything he’s read and studied so far, with detailed descriptions of every last thing he read until McCoy held a hand up. He stopped mid-sentence, flushing slightly as he his brain caught up with his mouth and he realized he’d been rambling for several minutes. 

"That's enough. And with that brain of yours you feel you're less prepared? Son, you could open up that green-blooded goblin better than me!"

“I think we both know there are stark differences between the theoretical and the practical.” Julian grinned though, eyes filled with a mixture of pride and relief.

"Whenever you want to try it in practice, I can convince the pointed ears bastard he's sick so you can operate him."

“I’d rather not lie to one of my commanding officers the first week on the job.”

McCoy shook his head, frowning despite the twinkle in his eyes. "Too bad. I'd like to see if he has a heart or not."

“According to my research his is bigger than both of ours by approximately 275%.”

"And your sense of humor? How big is it?" McCoy asked dryly, leaning in and giving him a flat look. 

“Oh, I’d say it’s massive, doctor.”

"Are you so sure?"

Julian grinned a bit sheepishly, shaking his head a few times. “About my sense of humor? Yes. Now If you asked me about how well I notice sarcasm...” 

"I guess not that well, right? A bit literal, aren't we?" McCoy smiled warmly at him, patting him on the shoulder. 

Julian winced a bit, biting his lips and resisting the urge to close his eyes. “I fear they didn’t quite fix that when they did the rest of my brain up.”

Bones looked at him with a sudden tenderness. What had this boy gone through? "There's nothing to fix in your brain. I doubt there ever was."

Julian blinked a bit at that, and then returned the warm look from before, grinning a bit. “Thank you, doctor McCoy.”

"Whatever they did to you and your sister, is not the same they did to Khan."

“You don’t think?” Julian asked in an intrigued voice, tilting head his head to the right as he leaned in closer to the doctor.

"Khan is aggressive and scary. You and your sister... Well, you're a bit like puppies, and not of the kind you can find in Vulcan. Now your boyfriend, I don't like him, but certainly he didn't try to kill me as soon as he woke up."

Julian was not sure how he felt about being mistaken for Sarina's brother but... Perhaps that'd keep them safe. Together.

“No, Garak usually waits at least a few days for that.” Julian smiled cheekily as he studied the tricorder. She wasn’t his sister but... in some ways she was, certainly she was the closest thing he had to family. He glanced up, wondering at that. “Khan was... we were both raised in the same world. It was a world that had no place for us a long time before they tried to conquer it.”

"Yet you turned out so different. Someone who's done a research on bone regeneration like yours can't be such a bad person. Especially considering the scar tissue proves you broke your own bones several times to test the technique."

Julian flushed and swallowed a few times, feeling like when he was a boy and was caught doing something wrong. “I... a few times, yes. I had to be sure it worked, and I certainly wasn’t going to use anyone else as a test subject. That wouldn’t be right.”

"I don't think Khan would agree with you. Here, hold this brain for a second."

He passed him a jar while he searched inside a cabinet.

“Of course.” Julian studied the brain curiously. It was purple and the lobes looked different to a human's ones.

"Don't worry, it was donated by an Andorian. I didn't open up the old bugger." He turned and looked at him, grinning almost impishly. "Quickly. Tell me all you studied about Andorians."

Julian did again, reciting everything he read enthusiastically, his free hand moving through the air. “Is that enough? I had a few more chapters on their endocrine system to read but —“

"More than enough. Not even Spock talks so much about science."

“Oh, I-I’m sorry, it’s all just so fascinating! I stayed up all night reading.”

"Your people don't need to sleep as much as we normal humans, do you?" McCoy asked, gaze merely curious rather than judgmental. 

“No, just a few hours a night.” Julian admitted with a quick shrug. “Four hours tend to be enough for Sarina and me.”

"Isn't that Cardassian of yours annoyed by your habits? His people used to be so secretive I don't know anything about his biology."

"Used?"

"Forget I said that." Bones suddenly turned, shoulders stiff rein for. He needed to find a way to get out of the conversation. “Tell me about Deltans.”

"No, I won't forget, I literally can't. What happened, a sudden shift in their foreign politics?" Julian’s voice was painfully small and hopeful.

"You could say that." McCoy barely whispered, knowing he'd messed it up.

"Please tell me what happened."

Bones paled as he bit his lip, feeling his blood run cold. He’d fear the moment of telling this would come, and he had really hoped not to be the one telling them the news. “He doesn’t know. Well of course he doesn’t, or he wouldn't be so calm.”

"Know what?" Julian felt his stomach twist, bile spreading up through his throat until his entire body burned. He'd caught some glances, some whispers, but...

“Cardassia fell a few years ago in their war with the Klingon.”

"What does "fell" mean? What happened to his people? His planet?" Julian’s voice shook as he spoke, vision focusing in on McCoy’s face. 

“Their planet and colonies were ravaged during the war. Bombed into oblivion. It’s a wasteland now.”

Julian felt his head spinning, the room suddenly feeling too warm. This couldn't be happening. He'd promised Garak to take him back to his homeland, he had to. He'd learned the language and all the customs so he'd be able to integrate into society with him. It couldn't be true. He had to see the planet with his own eyes.

"And his species? He's not... He's not the last one, is he?" He tumbled backwards, hitting a table and not noticing the sharp cut in his hand as tools flew.

“We’re not sure. The area is forbidden."

"This can't... This is not happening. I can't... I can't tell him." He pressed his hands to his face and noticed he was bleeding.

McCoy took his hand on his own with a surprising amount of gentleness. Julian let him, tears building in the back of his eyes. “Careful now.”

"He can't... He... This is a joke, right? Garak can't know, he can't, he..." He was borderline hysterical, and then turned and saw the very person he didn't want to standing in the door, moving his tail.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *raise eyebrow* "what will now happen with our heroes?" *hide behind a rock so nobody kills them for the cliffhanger*
> 
> This is but the beginning!
> 
> Comments and kudos are love, as always!


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garak finds out what happened to his people.
> 
> \-------  
> Garak suddenly started to laugh, spasms going through his body as his hands started to shake. "What an amazing fabrication! I almost fell for it for a second!"
> 
> "Elim." Julian kept his voice steady as he took a step forward, pulling him into his arms. 
> 
> "Whose idea of a joke was it? It is amazingly well done!"
> 
> "Elim, please."
> 
> “I almost fell for it for a second!”

Julian looked at Garak with horror, hands falling to his side. What could he say to make it better? He'd heard about Cardassia for over a year, learned how to speak its language so one day he'd be able to visit. He’d grown more and more hopeful they would soon go there once he woke up in the future, and now... and now...

"Garak, I..." Julian took a few steps towards him, shaking a little. He knew he was breaking Garak's spirit and he had know idea how to fix it.

"Did the doctor hurt you?" His voice was pleasant, but McCoy stepped away from Julian, cold shivers down his spine when the blue eyes fixed on him.

"No, no... he told me... I'm so sorry, Garak."

"Told you what?" He wrapped Julian up in his arms, still looking at the doctor suspiciously. Federation and Khan be damned, if he had hurt him...

Julian shivered and held Garak's face between his hands. His gaze was almost unbearably sad. "There was a war between Klingon and Cardassia. A brutal, devastating one. Cardassia lost. Cardassia... all the colonies..."

"I don't believe that." He gave one step back, letting go of Julian suddenly and pushing him away slightly as he went on autopilot. 

"You may be the last of your species." McCoy looked at him with infinite sorrow, voice almost painfully gentle.

"No, I don't know what kind of test this is, but -"

"I can show you the archives if you want, but they are distressing."

"Of course I want to see them." He sounded cold, terrifying.

Julian squeezed his hand, voice soft as he took a step toward him. "Elim..."

"I need to see what happened." His voice was strained and high, hollow in a way Julian had never heard before.

"I just warn you, it's disturbing for me and I can only imagine that for you …”

"Just show me what happened!" Garak screamed, all his mellow attitude suddenly stripped away. His eyes flashed with rage and fear. McCoy turned the camera on. 

Julian stood close to him as the images started flashing across the screen. 

Flames everywhere, smoke coming from the ground as though it had become radioactive. The plants turned red, then black, to finally become white and crumble, just as the people around them, falling as they screamed and screamed and screamed. Everything burned, and thought it was not a long attack, it seemed to last centuries as they watched the whole planet turn into a cinder. Even the cameras started to fail at the end, radiation entering their protective layers. From above, the whole planet looked just as the people below, turning to colors to then settle to a terrifying white, a dead color.

"Elim, we can stop it if..."

"No, we're not going to stop." His voice was oddly detached, gaze not flickering from the images in front of him.

"Elim, please..."

"Hey, Guess who has been dubbed the new promise of engin... Something wrong? Julian, did you do something?" Sarina stopped dead in her tracks, registering too late what were they watching, putting her hands over her mouth to stop herself from screaming as people just like Garak turned to dust with pained spasms.

“No, Julian.” Garak pushed his hand away roughly, body starting to shake as he watched the images flicker.

"Julian, what is that?" Her voice was a whisper. Julian glanced back to see her eyes wide with fear. 

Julian met her gaze, opening and closing his mouth a few times. “Cardassia.”

Garak suddenly started to laugh, spasms going through his body as his hands started to shake. "What an amazing fabrication! I almost fell for it for a second!"

"Elim." Julian kept his voice steady as he took a step forward, pulling him into his arms. 

"Whose idea of a joke was it? It is amazingly well done!"

"Elim, please."

“I almost fell for it for a second!”

“Elim, please.” Julian begged him.

Garak shook heavily and looked at him in a panic. "I can't breathe."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What will happen next? find out next Monday!!
> 
> Comments and kudos are love!


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garak knows someone has been tampering with the timeline. He just knows. Now the problem is finding the proof.
> 
> \--------
> 
> "What are you suggesting, Elim?"
> 
> “That someone with more technological advancements than the Klingons wanted Cardassia gone.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now the plot begins to unravel!

"Is he really the last one?" Sarina looked at him with infinite sorrow as Julian monitored his vitals.

“They can’t be sure. There were survivors who escaped but they refused any aid. It’s hard to think they could survive for years by themselves, given the devastation. They probably had radiation poisoning anyway.”

"Nobody knows where they went?'

"No." Julian muttered in a low voice, expression tense as he brushed back Garak's hair. The cardassian was sedated, his even breath contrasting with the pained sounds he’d been doing during his panic attack.

"Not even the ragnars survived?" Sarina asked in a small voice, her hands shaking a bit. She thought of all the stories he had told them about them.

"I... I don't know. No." He sobbed in spite of himself, body shaking as he leaned over Garak.

"What will we do now, Julian?"

“I don’t know. We need... I don’t know how to fix this.”

"We can't. This happened while we were asleep. If we hadn't, still it would have happened after his death."

“I... I need to...” Julian sobbed softly, pressing his face into his hands. He felt so useless, so incapable and it was his fault, in a way. If he’d never met Garak, never led him to Australia ...

"We can only stay at his side. It's not as we can go back in time."

“No, we can’t. Not yet.” Julian suddenly looked determined, eyes flashing as he straightened his spine. He didn’t give up that easily. “We’re going to figure it out.”

Garak awoke slowly, not really realizing where he was at the beginning. Strange lights, a doctor dressed in blue... Was he still dreaming, or prisoner on some alien planet? Then the realization hit him. It had not been a dream.

Julian saw his face and immediately grabbed his hand, expression somber.

"You verified those images were true, right? Not a... Not a fabrication." He looked at Julian, talking in Kardassi and hoping the translator would keep their conversation private, almost pleading. He knew him. He knew Julian would have checked the veracity of what they’ve seen as soon as he lost consciousness.

“Yes, we verified them.” Julian’s voice was raw from crying as he knelt down next to his lover. Yes, Kardassi was not being translated, perhaps because it had died with its people before it was added to the computer database. “We checked all the historical records too.”

"Survivors?"

“None that we’ve found yet.”

"Some must have fled the planet. What about the colonies? We were starting to colonize our moons."

"Most of those were ravaged in the war, but a few survived a bit longer. It's possible there are Cardassian refugees there." It was a feeble lie, and they both knew it. Was it for Garak or for Julian? Certainly the cardassian preferred a hard truth rather than the silver linings Julian always tried to hold onto, so it was most likely for the human.

"How far are we from my planet? Do you think we could convince the captain to take us there?"

Julian swallowed tightly. “We can try, but... it’s a forbidden zone. No one goes there.”

"Why? Why would an area in need be forbidden?"

"Because the Klingon invaded, Elim. They still are there, they annexed it as a trophy."

“No.” Garak said, voice tinged with fury even as his expression turned empty. He turned to McCoy, switching to English, so the translator would pick up his words. “And your Federation did nothing to help them? To try to save Cardassia? You just watched?”

"We were at war with the Klingon as well. We barely survived it. By the time we learned about your planet devastation, half our territory was invaded too, the records were all extracted either from your planet transmissions or the Klingon ones. Humanity was on the verge of being wiped out too."

“I see.”

Garak’s expression was carefully blank, eyes staring into the nothingness of the infirmary’s white walls.

"I wanted to volunteer. They didn't let me through. I wanted to help your people when it happened." McCoy looked at him with a heavy gaze, voice cracking slightly. "I can... We could somehow find a reason to go near the area, but it's hard to pass the Klingon blockade. Every time we tried to send humanitarian help the ships were taken down."

Garak nodded a little, fully aware of how that was probably true, as he felt himself grow more and more detached. “Don’t worry doctor, I’m very good at creating reasons.”

"I imagine. But with the scandal after Khan's banishment, I'd suggest you wait a bit. People are still a bit uneasy after what happened. And you need to rest."

“Of course. But not too long.” Garak kept his detached tone. Julian shivered at it and wondered if he only brought Garak to a future he wouldn’t be able to survive.

McCoy called Julian to the side. "I suggest you talk to Spock about this. He'll understand you, and he's not as fond of rules as he claims to be. I've seen him do all kinds of reckless things for the people he's loyal, so he may help you. Deep down he is a soft man."

Julian nodded, grasping McCoy’s shoulder. His voice was weak when he spoke. “Thank you, I will...”

"I'm sorry you woke up to this world. I'm sorry I was unable to help his people. I swear I tried, but it seemed nothing was enough."

“And I’m sorry I brought Garak into it.” Julian laughed dryly. He knew the feeling, he’d been in warzones before. He couldn’t blame him for not being able to do enough. “I thought... we can’t catch a break, it seems. The universe seems to be punishing us for who knows what sin.”

"It's not your fault. None of it is, Dr. Bashir."

“I know, but it doesn’t feel that way.” Julian closed his eyes, exhausted and feeling like he might collapse at any second. So much for his first day at the job.

"Go rest. I'll talk with the captain and Spock so they visit you in a couple hours."

“All right.” Julian lied down in the bed next to Garak and let sleep overcome him.

He heard Sarina's steps as she went to her quarters, probably needing time to herself, but didn't even open his eyes.

Some hours later, Julian awoke to the feeling of a soft hand on his shoulder, and the captain looking at him. Spock was behind him. "A word with you, doctor? Alone?"

“All right.” Julian slid out of bed and followed them into McCoy’s office. He swallowed tightly, hands shaking a little in spite of himself.

"We were meaning to tell you about what happened, when you were more stable and sure of your place in this era. I'm sorry you had to learn this way. It was never our intention to withhold information from you." Kirk looked at Julian with a small smile, gaze warm and open. Comforting. "What will you do now? The peace with the Klingon is still too frail to risk an incident crossing their borders, and too many ships have disappeared trying to get to that area."

“I’m afraid Garak won’t accept that. We’ll have to make our way there one way or another. I understand if that is a risk you and your crew can’t take. You’ve been very kind to us, and I won’t risk any harm coming to you.”

"Stay with us a little longer. We can train you and then find an... unavoidable reason to trespass." Spock said conversationally, though Julian swore he almost heard something oh rebellion in his voice. "There could be all sorts of signals for help and strange phenomena in that area of space, after all. It'd be just logical to go investigate."

“Of course.”

"And you may need the federation backup. Don't worry, one of our core principles is to help whoever is in need, we won't leave you alone." Kirk grabbed his shoulder softly.

Julian smiled crookedly, expression grateful. The first time somebody really wanted to help him in his life, and yet there was nothing to be done. “Thank you. We... I can’t say how much we appreciate it.”

"I expect you all three to be model crewmen in the meantime, while we plan how to break in, is that clear?" Kirk adopted a more serious look, and Julian hurried to follow, straightening up.

“Of course. We won’t make a single mistake or speak out of line.”

"Just be yourself. We won't help perfect dolls but real, good people that prove worthy of our help."

“Of course. We’ll be ourselves, just on our best behavior.”

Julian came back to an awake Garak, already reading about the history of his planet in the last 200 years. "Did you know Cardassia actually colonised 4 systems? Far more than when I left. Truly remarkable."

“That does sound like it. So they were spread out when the war started.” Julian murmured as he sat down on the bed next to him, his hand brushing over the top of Garak’s.

"Yes, which is why the Klingon made sure to bomb all the spaceports first and then invaded. They wanted to leave no survivors." There's something cold and distant in his voice. "For a pack of brutes, they certainly were far too organized and intelligent. It's not their normal strategy."

Julian frowned as he glanced at the report. Something felt wrong here.

"Why do you say it's not normal? Maybe they changed over the last 200 years?"

"No, all the other reports are the behavior I'd expect from them. Messy, bloody, disorganized, with their brutality and sheer physical force as the only means they have to win. I’ve been reading about the war with the Federation, and their strength laid in their numbers and chaotic behaviour. Only the war with Cardassia stands out. This is not normal."

"What are you suggesting, Elim?"

“That someone with more technological advancements than the Klingons wanted Cardassia gone.”

"We could see all the political files of the last 200 years. See if I find a pattern."

“Yes, yes. That makes sense. Check. But I don't think somebody able to wipe out an empire in just one week will leave traces.”

Julian read the reports for hours, until his eyes started to see blurs. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Garak was right. All the reports matched the same patterns, the same strategies. All the conflicts were long, bloody, and based on a rooted sense of honor, with rival houses competing with each other. 

The war with Cardassia wasn’t. It had been swift, unprovoked, with not a single land battle. It had no honor, and all Julian read pointed to the fact that those involved in that war would be going to Gre’thor, because of their dishonorable behaviour.

He kept checking and handing papers off to Garak and Sarina. “There must be something. There  _ has _ to be.”

"What if there's nothing? If it just was... A good organization?" Sarina felt bad just by suggesting it, and her tone showed how not even she believed that.

“There has to be something. Garak is right, the Klingons are conquerors, but not like this. There’s no sense of honor in this. All that I read, all the traditions... this doesn't match, but I can’t see why. The instigator of the war was a revered Klingon leader.”

"You’re right, all in this war was illogical at its core. They don't ravage lands like this. And they never used, before or after, chemical weapons. They prefer body combat." Spock approached them from behind. "May I take a look at the files? I could find something you are missing."

“Yes, that would be most appreciated.” Garak told him with a warm smile, still detached. He could very well had been thanking him for passing him the salt.

"It certainly breaks their historical pattern." After some hours, Spock started to type in a pad.

Julian watched over his shoulder, gaze tight and curious. They had all arrived to that same conclusion already, but Spock was from this era, unlike them. He probably would have a different insight.

"Is this behavior present in any other way, Mr Spock? Maybe in records previous to the ones we’ve been reading?"

“No, only during this period of time, and during this particular war. However it does align with a few other behavioral shifts.”

Julian looked at the documents, frowning tightly as he traced over the words with his fingers a few times. "Could be because the ruler of that time was a reformist that wanted to change the honor system for a more technological one? I see he was murdered a bit after the siege of Cardassia and considered dishonorable."

“Yes but the strange part is he didn’t hold those beliefs until around the time he came into power. He was just a regular power hungry Noble until then.”

“The question is why and what else have they changed about our history. What was the objective behind this.” Garak had a strange expression, lips pursed and his brow furrowing so the ridges all turned inward toward each other. 

"You suspect tampering outside the normal development of the galaxy political map, Mr. Garak?" Spock caught his idea immediately. He himself had been wondering about that war for years. Sometimes... certain events seemed illogical, but he’d never been able to pinpoint why.

“Yes, very much so. And not by people from this time.”

"That is a bold assumption to make without more leads than some scorched planets and an unusual leader." Spock raised his eyebrows and crossed his arms. "You need more than that to build a case, I'm afraid, and even more to do something about it. I've seen people come and go through time, and believe me, it's not an easy business, and even less easy to control." He thought of his sister, he thought of her mother. Both had suffered so much, and he sometimes wondered where they were now.

“Then we’ll just have to find some evidence of future tampering.”

"And if there's none, and it is as just an unavoidable tragedy?"

Garak shook his head. "I refuse to believe that."

“Right. I hope that you won’t let your emotions cloud your judgment.”

"It's not my emotions. It's what I feel is wrong in all this. The evidence doesn't make sense. You are a follower of logic, so you will find my conclusion not too impossible once you think about it."

Spock nodded. Yes, he believed Garak had a point, even though he couldn’t quite back it up before gathering more evidence. “Then I shall leave you all to your investigation, and conduct one of my own as well.”

"I'd like to have access to other files. The Klingon ones, if possible. Don't worry, I won't neglect my duties in security."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just because we're a little teasers... Next chapter will take place at a moment where they were surrounded by tribbles... Only now there will be more copies of Julian going around.
> 
> Comments and kudos are love!


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Why is there another Julian running around the ship with an engineer while they face a tribble crisis? 
> 
> \-------------
> 
> Sarina ran to the infirmary without waiting for his response. She heard their voices as they whispered, not knowing someone with superior hearing was nearby.
> 
> "Miles, I swear, she looks just like a girl I saw in a medical file. She had different hair, but..." 
> 
> "And the girl in the elevator looked like your grandma. Please, Julian, I beg you." She heard the man — Miles — scoff as she left them.

Stardate 4523.3 - July 2268 - The Enterprise, orbiting Station K7

They had been working on the ship for almost a year now. Building the case. It was clear time travel was possible, yet there still were no proof Cardassia's demise was tied to it. 

Garak had mourned, thrashed around helplessly, cried, and eventually come to terms about the devastation. Twice the Enterprise tried to bring him home so he could at least mourn in his homeland, but it had been impossible. He’d taken onto the task of organizing all the files about Cardassian culture so at least something of his people survived in the memory of the galaxy.

And then Sarina saw another Julian roam the ship.

It was not her Julian. He was older, hair less messy and eyes far away. He held himself with a stiffness her Julian never had. He also looked just like Julian did every time he'd lost someone, something. Every time life had been cruel to him. And yet still he wasn’t her Julian, he was someone else.

Standing with him was an engineer she was sure was not part of the ship‘s crew.

"... I tell you, Julian, I can understand this bloody system if you just stop talking for a minute!"

"But Miles!"

Sarina stared with wide eyes, watching from behind the wall. He moved like her Julian, talked like him, but he seemed more defeated. His friend - older, with a look of exasperated affection - was batting Julian’s hands away from the wires. “You’re a doctor, what do you know about it anyway?”

"Hello, need any help? First days are rough, uh?" She smiled at them, cataloging already every little difference with her brother. This, this was what they've been looking for over the past year. If she just managed to scan them for chronitons ...

“First days! Uh - yes, we just transferred here.” That Julian smiled awkwardly as he held out a hand to shake hers, just a touch of panic in his gaze. 

"Probably my brother and I will be your bosses, then, going by your shirts. Celine Donald, senior engineer. And you are...?" Just in case, she decided to change her name a tad. Something in the eyes of those men told her she was not a complete stranger to them either. Or at least to this Julian. There was a recognition there, the same that had told her Julian was the same as she was, so long ago in a different ship. Seemed augments found each other no matter time or space.

Bashir swallowed a few times and then shook his head a few times. He smiled at her stiffly, holding his hand out. “Julian Bashir.”

Spock had told them the story about how his sister had confused her own future self with her mother, so she knew she was treading a thin line. She had to be careful if she wanted to drag them to the infirmary for testing.

"Curious name. Earth native?" She kept her face straight as her heart raced. She felt like screaming. What was going on? "A bit old for a cadet, aren't you?"

“We were in the army first!” The other man cried suddenly, shooting Bashir a sharp look. Bashir shrugged, wincing in a way that was painfully familiar. “Miles O’Brien.”

"Oh, an army man. Nice. Which wars did you fight? Klingon? Cardassians?"

She wondered if her bluff would be called or bear fruit. It was a long shot, but... it might be their only chance. She needed to know. And after all, she was known for being able to retrieve information just because of her small stature and innocent face. 

“Cardassians.” Miles answered with a surprising amount of confidence. There was something stoney in his gaze for a moment, a hardness that surprised her.

"I see. Well, I won't interrupt you boys any longer, although I may pop in to supervise you in a few minutes, just in case you need any help." She smiled. "Oh! Doctor, perhaps you may want to come with me to the infirmary in a little while. I'm sure doctor McCoy will be glad to meet you, but perhaps I should check if he's in the middle of a surgery first."

She ran to the infirmary without waiting for his response. She heard their voices as they whispered, not knowing someone with superior hearing was nearby.

"Miles, I swear, she looks just like a girl I saw in a medical file. She had different hair, but..." 

"And the girl in the elevator looked like your grandma. Please, Julian, I beg you." She heard the man — Miles — scoff she left them.

She entered the infirmary breathing heavily, one hand pressed over her chest. Her heart felt like it was about to explode.

"Julian! Leonard!"

Bones rolled his eyes, annoyed as he crossed his arms and gave her a tight look. "For the last time, it's doctor McCoy, kid."

“I just met Julian but about a decade older. He recognized me, but he also didn’t seem to. But it’s — it’s proof something is wrong here. It’s the proof we’ve been looking for!” She grabbed a wall, trying to catch her breath.

"You met... Me? I don't understand."

"And, and, a man is with him who fought a war against Cardassians. A human man." She was almost screaming, her hands shaking as the other two stared at her blankly. After a fruitless year, suddenly all that they needed may have been dropped on their doorstep.

“What? But the Federation has never been at war with Cardassia.” Bones frowned and shook his head, a touch of suspicion in his gaze. 

Julian took a few steps closer to Sarina. He shook his head, biting his lip a little. "You think they are..."

"Yes! Leonard, I need a tricorder. Julian, modify it to read chronitons. And... we need to hide you. I'm not sure what would happen if you two meet."

“Right, right. I’ll hide out in McCoy’s office. No windows there.”

Sarina nodded quickly, before grabbing his arm before he could run off. "And call Garak. He should watch this. Can you modify a monitor so you can watch us in the office?"

"You forget who you're talking with, sis?" He was already working on the circuits, without asking for Bones’ authorization.

After everything was set up, she ran to the place where the men were working, bumping into a tall, dark haired woman in a Security red outfit she'd never met. The woman grinned at her, giving a small wave as she sauntered down the hall. 

"Were all people that enthusiastic in the past, old man? I swear I saw that engineer run down this corridor twice already."

"Well, things were always more or less on fire, Ben."

Sarina grinned and took note. They were from the future too. She needed to find Julian and this Miles guy right away. If she was right... they had a way to save Cardassia.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos are love! We think some of you already figured out a bit of what is going on with the characters...


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sarina drags the other Julian and Miles to the medbay, where Bones confirms what they suspected... something is wrong. And something silver is following their steps.
> 
> \--------
> 
> "Oh, hello, fresh meat. I hope you know why they call me Bones." He laughed at Bashir's panicked expression. Some things never changed, it seemed, and this man looked every bit the same as the Julian he knew and respected. "Oh come on, lad, it's just a joke! So tell me, what have you done before this posting? Are your health charts up to date? Dear, hand me a tricorder to check on his vitals."
> 
> Nurse Chapel smiled and gave him the tools, making sure they were the ones they've calibrated earlier.
> 
> Bashir smiled pleasantly, looking like he might strain himself from the effort. He stayed perfectly still as the tricorder moved across him. “Yes, all up to date. Luckily we’re both quite healthy, so I’m sure this is not really necessary.”
> 
> "So, son, I was asking where did you go before the Enterprise. I imagine you must have quite a remarkable qualification to get assigned here."

Sarina waited a second until her breath was closer to normal and walked in front of the older Bashir and Miles. 

"Doctor McCoy is free, why don't you come meet him? He's so understaffed, poor man. Most nurses run after just a couple of weeks." She grabbed his arm and pulled him through the halls, purposely ignoring the panicked look on both men’s faces.

"But Miles...!" He looked behind and swung his free arm around, hoping he'd be saved. The small girl was surprisingly strong. Something... Something was not right, he could feel it. He swallowed tightly and hoped he would be released soon. 

“Now, now, don’t fret. Whatever you’re wanting to do will still be there afterward.” Sarina led them to McCoy, smiling warmly and trying to keep her gaze steady. She didn’t need Julian to panic any more than he was. She took a few steps towards him, nodding casually. “These are the new men.”

"Oh, hello, fresh meat. I hope you know why they call me Bones." He laughed at Bashir's panicked expression. Some things never changed, it seemed, and this man looked every bit the same as the Julian he knew and respected. "Oh come on, lad, it's just a joke! So tell me, what have you done before this posting? Are your health charts up to date? Dear, hand me a tricorder to check on his vitals."

Nurse Chapel smiled and gave him the tools, making sure they were the ones they've calibrated earlier.

Bashir smiled pleasantly, looking like he might strain himself from the effort. He stayed perfectly still as the tricorder moved across him. “Yes, all up to date. Luckily we’re both quite healthy, so I’m sure this is not really necessary.”

"So, son, I was asking where did you go before the Enterprise. I imagine you must have quite a remarkable qualification to get assigned here."

Garak looked at his own Julian from inside the room, narrowing his gaze as he took in the older man standing close to Julian. "Dear, have you ever seen that red-haired man before?"

“Not that I can remember. He doesn’t look familiar but... there’s something about him that makes me feel safe.” Julian explained, glancing at the man with a hint of fondness. He watched him take a step closer to Bashir, shoulders straightening. “He’s protective of his Julian.”

“Yes, yes. I was a military doctor. Doctor Bashir, conquering the frontier and all that. Miles here was an engineer.” There was a bitterness to his tone.

"In the Cardassian war, Celine told me? Where were you assigned?"

“Oh, umm, the Luciana.” Bashir said with a confidence that Sarina could tell was faked. He really was the same man as her brother. "Ship or city? I'm afraid I'm not familiar."

“A ship. We were on a battleship actually and -“

“We don’t like to talk about it. Bad memories.” Miles cut him hurriedly, giving him a flat look. 

"Yes, I imagine. I always say, ships should have a counselor on board." Bones nodded, smiling crookedly as he took in their relieved expressions. 

“Probably, though I don’t like talking to them either. Do you need anything else? Bashir really should get back to studying... flora.”

"No, that would be all." They started to walk out when McCoy made a gesture, waving one hand in Julian’s face. "Doctor Bashir, tomorrow at 8 starts your first shift. Be on time."

“Yes, yes of course. If you’ll — I’ll see you then. Yes. Until then, of course.”

Doctor Bashir stumbled out, seeming horrified as he made too big gestures with his hand to the man next to him. Garak scoffed at the computer screen. “He certainly acts like you, my dear.”

"Yet he didn't recognize Sarina. Something's wrong."

“No, no he didn’t. Maybe she's not from his timeline." Garak mused softly, though he couldn’t quite imagine a timeline where Sarina and Julian didn’t exist together. 

"He’s me but... not me. Or maybe he’s neither. Dr. McCoy can tell us.”

Bones was already analyzing the data when they came out of the room.

"He certainly is several years younger than you, Julian. 300, give or take. The readings say he hasn't been born yet, but he's you down to the last hair."

“Wait, so he was born 300 years later than me and yet his genome is the same? that doesn’t make any sense, and you know that.”

Garak looked at the graphs, pensive as his grow furrowed. "It does. We spent a whole year researching about time travel, and we all know something is very, very wrong, love."

"One thing is knowing something is wrong with the timeline... Another is having a twin that's 300 years older. He may be a clone?"

"An augmented clone. He's you in every single aspect." McCoy watched the data, letting out a soft whistling sound. 

“They augmented my clone? That doesn’t make any sense. It wouldn’t be any more legal then.”

Sarina leaned against the console, pressing her hands under her chin as she tried to math it out. “Unless he’s not a clone so much as simply another version of you.”

“A time-displaced me?”

Bones looked into the database until he found a report he remembered reading ages ago. A photo of a man with cybernetic implants in all his body and a mechanical eye looked at them with dead eyes. One of his arms had something that looked like tools instead of a hand, and his skin was uncharacteristically pale. "A parallel reality. Some reported seeing an alien species the day we made first contact with the Vulcans, a species we haven't encountered anywhere yet. A cybernetic one. Read the description. Whatever they were, we haven't encountered them before or afterward, and we only have this one photo to prove they were even there."

“So you think that he is me from a different reality then? But why would he be born so much later? Is he time-shifted?”

McCoy shook his head suddenly. “No, I think  _ you _ are.”

"Me? How? Why?"

“The why, I’m not sure of, though it may have been related to something you — or  _ that you _ — does in the future.”

"And clearly something with my people too, or they wouldn't have been wiped out so thoroughly." Garak was already piecing everything together, and only his strong training kept him from jumping the older doctor Bashir demanding answers.

"That man Miles said he fought the Cardassians. In his reality they exist, obviously." Sarina bit her lip, moving her hand through the air. "And that pretty security lady? I'm sure I'd remember her if I'd seen her before."

Julian agreed as he shook his head. He glanced at Garak, expression anxious. “But what about the two of you? I don’t want...”

"They looked at me funny. I'm quite sure I shouldn't be here either. The three of us are a mistake."

Julian turned to meet her gaze, relief flitting across his face. The issue — maybe all their issues — was because they were people out of time. They didn’t belong here any more than they belonged to 1996. “Then let’s find out why.”

As they walked out, a silver line followed them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And yet again, even more cliffhangers!
> 
> Comments make us so happy!


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The intruders keep going around the ship, as Julian, Sarina and Garak try to understand what's going on, and why is there another Julian there.
> 
> \------------------------
> 
> When they were out of earshot, he whispered urgently, eyes wide as he nearly tripped over his own feet. "Let's search for tribbles that could kill the captain, whatever they... Are..." As they entered the mess hall, they noticed the small furry creatures covering everything.
> 
> "I dare say we found our tribbles, my dear." Garak looked at them with curiosity, smelling one. "You think perhaps they are edible?"
> 
> “Garak!” Julian held one to his chest protectively. He was a vegetarian for starters. But even if he hadn’t become one upon waking up in the future, he wouldn’t consider eating something that looked like a cross between a hamster and a newborn kitten. 
> 
> "What? Certainly there seems to be an unnatural amount of these creatures." Garak just resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Really. Julian never let him eat anything. He undid his mask, letting his face free to be able to smell better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right on time for Aidaran's birthday, one new chapter of this epic and long saga :)

Garak walked the Enterprise corridors with a large robe covering most of his body, tail tied to his back as he used to do on Earth. He kept his pace casual, body relaxed even as the ridges along his eyes tensed. "So, Sarina, who is that tall lady you were talking about?"

"She had dark hair, and red uniform. She was with a bald man in command.” 

“Sounds familiar, dear?” he turned to Julian, letting his face peek out just enough to catch the way Julian furrowed his brow, lips curling into something like a pout. 

“Not at all. We’ll have to — well, Sarina — will have to see what are they doing.”

"You should cover up too, Julian."

"Yes, I will... ugh, sorry." He looked at who he had bumped into, and had no doubt she was the woman Sarina was referring to. Tall, dark haired, gorgeous.

A small smudge on her neck showed there were some very well concealed spots on her skin.

“Julian? You’re looking fresh. Did you end up meeting someone here?” She gave him a knowing look, smirking a bit. Julian opened and closed his mouth a few times. Apparently there really was another him on this ship.

"I, I, yes, uhm, Celine wanted to, uhm, show me engineering. I seem to have lost … Miles. Have you seen him?"

Garak hoped she wouldn't notice his clawed feet protruding from under the robe. Since he had boarded the Enterprise he'd indulged in the small pleasure of letting his feet go free of shoes.

She pulled Julian to the side, away from the others, and whispered urgently.

“I’ll go find him. Remember, this might be fun, but we’re here to make sure Captain Kirk lives through the night.”

Julian nodded, trying to keep his expression even as thoughts raced through his mind. "Yes. What should I tell him once I find him?"

“That I’m in engineering waiting for him. We need to find that tribble, Julian.”

"And if Kirk talks to me?" Julian knew his spy skills were not the best, but he still tried. 

"Smile and say you're running an errand, don't give details. Now let's get moving again, Ben is here already."

A bald and dark man, in command yellow, approached them. He had an air of authority and looked focused. As with the other intruders, Julian felt a strange connection to the man, though not as strong as the one he felt with Miles and Jadzia.

"Yes, right away. I'll go back before Celine gets suspicious. Everything right in your end? Run into any problems?"

“No, no problems. A few exes, but no problems.”

"I imagine." No, he didn't, but better to smile and figure it out later. Was this woman extremely old or displaced too? "Kirk and Spock don't suspect anything, then?"

"Doctor, what is it with you and this interrogation?" The bald man huffed, shaking his head in what seemed like find exasperation. "Just go find Miles."

“Right, right. I’ll see you later, sir.” Julian hurried away, taking Garak by the arm. 

When they were out of earshot, he whispered urgently, eyes wide as he nearly tripped over his own feet. This was unbelievable. "We'll have to see if there are files on her. She talked about meeting exes. But right now, let's search for tribbles that could kill the captain, whatever they... Are..." As they entered the mess hall, they noticed the small furry creatures covering everything.

"I dare say we found our tribbles, my dear." Garak looked at them with curiosity, smelling one. "You think perhaps they are edible?"

“Garak!” Julian held one to his chest protectively. He was a vegetarian for starters. But even if he hadn’t become one upon waking up in the future, he wouldn’t consider eating something that looked like a cross between a hamster and a newborn kitten. 

"What? Certainly there seems to be an unnatural amount of these creatures." Garak just resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Really. Julian never let him eat anything. He undid his mask, letting his face free to be able to smell better.

“That doesn’t mean we should eat them. We need to find out why exactly the other me and his friends are so interested in them.”

"... The Klingon certainly don't seem to like them. They looked almost scared." They heard a crewman laughing.

Garak gritted his teeth. Usually when there were Klingon close, the captain didn't allow him to go near them, but he seemed so occupied now...

Julian grabbed his wrist, shooting him a warning look. “If you make a move now, you could jeopardize everything we’re learning. Revenge can wait.”

For a moment Garak seemed ready to argue, but then relaxed, putting a smiling mask over his rage. "You're right. Thanks love. How embarrassing of me if I threw one year of research away in a minute. What now, then? Certainly you can't be seen and we have no guarantees my presence here isn't wrong as well." 

"Well, I suppose you and I could go to our quarters and wait." Julian suggested weakly, looking down at his feet as he shuffled them back and forth. Somehow he didn’t think Garak would like that suggestion.

Garak gave him a look of disbelief. "Or I could go meet some Klingon, if you don't have better ideas." He kept calculating how to make it look like an accident if he crossed paths with a klingon. He’d done that before several times before.

"Should we tell Kirk and Spock about them?" Sarina frowned as she leaned over their shoulders. She was worried. There was no way to predict what would happen, not without more information.

"I believe so. They need to know something is wrong."

"Garak?" They turned at the sound and saw the woman in red, the one that had recognized Julian before, staring at them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens, now that Jadzia found them!!
> 
> Comments and kudos are love!


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally they get to meet their other selves... and confirm something is very, very wrong. Bashir from the future is very crossed at Garak, but why?
> 
> \----------------------
> 
> Garak took air raggedly and Julian took his hand, worried, as he took in the sadness of his doppelganger. "You're me, aren't you?"
> 
> Bashir circled him a bit before answering, looking at their intertwined hands with an indecipherable expression. “It appears that I am. The question is why exactly a clone of me or... whatever is going on here would be on the Enterprise.”
> 
> Jadzia glanced at the older Bashir, lips thin. “I have some questions for you too, Julian. This Julian said he was hunted during the eugenics war. Do you know why that would be?”
> 
> "I... No, no idea." The older Bashir's eyes darted to his young version. He looked at once betrayed and jealous, though fear was quickly overcoming both of them. 
> 
> "We scanned you in the infirmary. We're exactly the same down to the last gene, Jul.... Doctor Bashir, to make it easy. We're the same person, only our chronitons count is different."
> 
> Jadzia looked more relieved than anything else. “So you’re enhanced? Did you do something to yourself or it was done?”

They looked at the woman, Julian’s eyes wide as he opened and closed his mouth a few times. Now they had blown everything. No way to pretend they hadn’t noticed their presence now. They looked at each other and Garak nodded, taking a step forward with a tight smile. They needed to tell the truth. Julian took a step forward.

"My name is Julian Bashir and I was born the year 1984 on Earth."

The woman stared for a few seconds and then shook her head back and forth with a bemused smirk, expression suddenly more curious. She was surprised, but not terrified, angry or in denial. "Then we have a serious problem."

"I think we do. When was  _ your _ Julian Bashir born?"

"2341."

"A bit of a difference. We suspect that your Julian may be in the right timeline, while we’re in the wrong one."

"I'd like to hear more about that. And what is Garak doing here?"

Julian couldn't help but admire the calm of that woman, accepting all this with an open mind. He suspected in another time they'd have been great friends. Hell, maybe they were. He did feel a sort of bond with her, if not as strong as the one he had with Miles. 

"He's with me. He crashed onto Earth in 1995 and I nursed him back to health. He was sent on a mission from Cardassia, but he arrived at a rather unfortunate time for people like me."

"Crashed...? Certainly he's 300 years younger than ours, too. But he seems to still have a knack to make people angry." She noticed the  _ like me _ and stored it for later. Something really was wrong.

"Are there other Cardassians then?" Garak felt his heart ache, in a way he knew far too well now.

He hoped, for the first time in over a year, he would finally not be alone. He knew how dangerous hope was, but still...

"Of course. We're not exactly friends with them. But yes, many. Some would say too many... There aren't in this timeline, are they?" How soft she sounded, how compassionate. The way she looked at Garak, he felt she was piercing through him, knowing immediately what he’d been through.

"I'm the last one. Had I not been asleep in a derelict ship, probably I'd be dead too. Cardassia and her colonies were ravaged by Klingon. Acid attacks, bombings, genetic weapons. Nothing will ever grow in them again."

Jadzia widened her eyes, shaking her head a bit. She closed her eyes and muttered something in trill under her breath. Garak suspected it might be a curse. "Follow me. We need to talk to the Captain. And Julian."

"Very well, eh... I don't think you told us your name."

"Jadzia Dax. In my timeline you're one of my best friends, Julian."

"Are we? In my timeline I didn't have a lot of friends." 

Jadzia wrinkled her nose as she took in Garak. "We have a klingon in our group. He doesn't mean any harm - he's not from this world but..."

Julian looked panicked, reaching a hand out to grab her shoulder. Now he was terrified they were walking straight into danger. "Why would you? Have they... Have they invaded the federation?"

Garak made fists of his hands, feeling the old, familiar rage burning in his throat, threatening to close it. Jadzia shook her head and placed a hand on his shoulder until he relaxed.

"No, in our world, the Cardassia-Klingon war ended in a stalemate. If anything, their empire was worse off. The Federation and Klingon have an uneasy alliance... or we did. But this Klingon is a Federation citizen, so no need to worry."

Julian followed her, piercing the information together. He bit his lip, curiosity overcoming any fears he might have about asking too many questions. "But Cardassia still stands, then. They are alive! Why would anybody want to wipe it 200 years prior to your era, Jadzia? What should we do, if you think it's safe to talk about it? We have been investigating and this timeline certainly is full or discrepancies. Someone has been tampering for at least 400 years with it. All major planets had leaders that came out of nowhere, changed the political map and then died under mysterious circumstances. Was Cardassia already using warp 7 by the year 1950 of the human calendar in your timeline, for example?"

"No, of course not. They were prewarp then, too." Jadzia said with a raised eyebrow, pursing her lips together. She leaned in curiously, examining Julian's face. "But that means they would have had to move Julian's parents in the timeline. And why Julian? Why 1986? Nothing was going on then except the Eugenics war..."

"Where I was chased and almost killed for several years. Had I not had Garak with me, probably they would have succeeded."

Jadzia frowned a bit as she leaned in, gaze growing sharper. "Julian, why would they be after you during the eugenics war?"

" _ You don't know _ ." Garak looked at her with wonder, shaking his head a few times. Then he smirked a tad, wondering idly if that Julian had told his Garak. "You haven't told her in her timeline, Julian. Oh, I wonder why."

She smiled knowingly, shaking her head as she started to reevaluate the man she had known all these years. How had she been so blind? Everything made sense now. "No, I don't. But I'm starting to suspect it's one of two things."

"And you are...? You don't smell human." Garak softly smudged her neck makeup, showing her spots.

“Trill. We had made contact with the Federation at the time you're in, but you didn’t quite know about our biology yet, in your era.” Oh, Bones was in for a surprise if he ever found out the host of Emory was walking on the ship.

"No, you haven't made contact at all in this timeline. There’s no record of your species." Sarina shook her head, not quite able to keep from shooting the spots a curious look. She hadn’t seen anything like them before.

"But we had! Oh, if you knew how Leonard was then..." She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

No, Julian didn't want to know. "Now, that man Miles, he talked about a war against Cardassia?”

“Yes, the Federation and Cardassia were at war for several years during the mid 2300s.”

"Lucky for you we're not around to go to war this time, I imagine. Would you be opposed to us repairing the timeline, now you know the repercussions?"

Julian shivered. He knew that tone. He knew what Garak would do to bring his homeland back.

Jadzia raised an eyebrow and leaned in, gaze thoughtful. “I’m going to need more information first. Come with me. There’s someone I want you to meet. Well, meet again.”

They followed her, wondering if they were doing the right thing.

Julian found himself staring at his own image, slightly older and rumpled, a tiredness to his gaze.

Garak took air raggedly and Julian took his hand, worried, as he took in the sadness of his doppelganger. "You're me, aren't you?"

Bashir circled him a bit before answering, looking at their intertwined hands with an indecipherable expression. “It appears that I am. The question is why exactly a clone of me or... whatever is going on here would be on the Enterprise.”

Jadzia glanced at the older Bashir, lips thin. “I have some questions for you too, Julian. This Julian said he was hunted during the eugenics war. Do you know why that would be?”

"I... No, no idea." The older Bashir's eyes darted to his young version. He looked at once betrayed and jealous, though fear was quickly overcoming both of them. 

"We scanned you in the infirmary. We're exactly the same down to the last gene, Jul.... Doctor Bashir, to make it easy. We're the same person, only our chronitons count is different."

Jadzia looked more relieved than anything else. “So you’re enhanced? Did you do something to yourself or it was done?”

"What? You thought I was the one doing experiments? Just... Is that the kind of person I am in your timeline?" Julian looked at Bashir with horror. Bashir stared at Jadzia, gaze filling with hurt.

Jadzia stood between them, arms wide in her attempt to placate them.

“No! But I had to be sure. You didn’t tell us you were augmented either.”

"I wasn’t planning to." Doctor Bashir gave a stern look to his younger version, worrying his lip as though his words pained him. "And I also would like to know why he is with  _ that  _ particular Cardassian."

"My dear, it seems we're a bit at odds in the other timeline. What could you have possibly done to me?" Garak gave them an innocent look.

“ _ I _ do to you? Oh, now that’s rich, Garak.” Bashir's voice was cold, gaze sharp as he took a step back. Still, Julian could see the truth behind them, the hurt, the longing. “Sorry if I didn’t want to stay friends after your attempted genocide.”

"Whatever you say I did, clearly it was a different version of me."

“Please. Are you telling me you wouldn’t do that if you thought it would help Cardassia?”

"This is so not the time for this! You’re clearly time travelers, and I'm quite sure you'd prefer my captain not to find out. At the moment, only us three and the ship doctor know about this. Want the rumor to spread and end up in jail, or will you help us?" Sarina stood between the men. Really. Testosterone was the same no matter the era, and a quick glance at Jadzia told her they were on the same page about that.

Bashir turned to her and his gaze softened a bit. He crossed his arms, closing his eyes as he let out a breath. “How do you think we can help?”

"Who would benefit from wiping out us three and Cardassia? Who'd want Garak and the augments out of the way?" Julian knew once he had that information, everything else would fall into place.

"Well, what Garak and I have in common is living on the station around Bajor, which was invaded and ravaged by Cardassia."

"Could the bajorans do a coup at this scale?"

"No, not at all. I think maybe... no, but at that era they were..."

"The next enemy that'd benefit from this, doctor Bashir. We don't have time to speculate." Garak looked at him with sudden hardness in his eyes. To his surprise and hidden delight, Bashir merely scoffed at him. 

“There’s always the Dominion.”

"What's the Dominion?"

“An alliance in the Gamma quadrant. Ruled by the Founders. Shapeshifters who can only be detected by blood tests.” Bashir shrugged his shoulders, mouth pressed into a thin line. "But it seems too far fetched."

"And what does Cardassia have to do with any of this? Are we a threat?"

"More like the opposite, you are allies."

"Ah, so probably in your future we will betray them and save the quadrant." 

“Probably by killing the majority of them.” Bashir said dryly, giving Garak a cold look, though he swore he saw some sparks behind it.

"Julian." Jadzia looked at him until he scoffed and turned his gaze away from Garak. "You'd rather condone the genocide of Cardassia, then?"

“No, I’d prefer to avoid both.” Bashir snapped back, glaring hotly— but not at Garak. At his younger self. Julian suspected Bashir was ashamed of him. He hadn’t missed that feeling. 

"Maybe we could find a way to fix both, then." Jadzia’s voice was soft as she tooo using arm and tried to calm him down

Julian looked at the doctor and finally snapped back. "Any reason why you're looking at me as if I was a discarded organ in your operating table,  _ doctor _ ?"

Bashir's voice was clipped, almost clinical as though it would hide the surge of hurt in his gaze. “Technically, you basically are. A younger, naive version of me falling for Garak’s tricks, spilling all my secrets freely.”

"Whatever  _ your _ Garak did, is not what mine has. If it wasn’t for him, both Sarina and I would’ve been captured and experimented on, forced to participate in the war, and eventually killed. This Garak took us and the Enterprise crew as his family and homeland and fought for us. Not a week passes without me having to patch him up after a battle."

“You’ll forgive me if I find it hard to believe he’s doing it without ulterior motive.” Bashir answered in a way Julian didn’t believe in the least, twisting around to meet Jadzia’s gaze. He shook his head, biting his lip. “We have no reason to think we can trust them.”

Julian's tone was icy, frustration building in his chest at Bashir’s mixed signals. They didn’t have time for this. "Would you rather risk your timeline becoming wrecked until you disappeared and I was all that's left? Are you ready to bear the consequences?"

“We don’t even know if we’re from the same timeline. You could easily be from a mirror universe.”

Julian laughed dryly. Was that what he was bound to become? "So, you crossed to another universe, according to you. You are trying to save a captain Kirk that is not yours, so the logical explanation, or so you say, is that I was somehow just born early because of that. My, the future certainly is damned is that’s what you’re doing with your enhanced brain. Your mission is already a failure, and your Kirk will die, since you’re in the wrong place."

“Maybe. Maybe not. No way to know unless we save him.”

"Oh, so you finally decided that saving a captain from maybe another dimension may be more important than just going in circles,  _ doctor _ ?"

Jadzia took doctor Bashir by the arm. Her voice was compassionate but firm when she spoke. "A word."

He followed her, hands shaking with something that might be anger. Julian couldn’t quite tell. "What."

"Julian, what is wrong with you? You have to admit there's something wrong about this whole situation. I know our Garak and you aren’t on the best terms right now, but... everything could be in danger now, not just Kirk."

“Fine, then I want to talk to myself alone.”

"Do it. Just remember we're short of time." 

When they were alone, the older Bashir sat down across from himself, in an empty office. His voice was tight. “Is he making you do this? Or do you think you’re protecting the greater good by doing this?”

"Since you don't want to believe me, I'll tell you how my life has been. When I was 6 I was taken to a secret facility to get 'fixed' whatever that meant in my parents’ heads. I only found out what they’ve done to me by mistake, when I, as a star student, decided to analyze my blood when I was 15, in the Uni lab. I studied medicine until I was 20, always hiding my status since being me was already illegal, when the war started and several agencies started to pressure me to develop genetically targeted weapons. At a point I thought they’d kill me, so I had to run and hide in the middle of nowhere, until I found a spaceship with a lizard man extremely injured, and since neither had anywhere else to go, we banded together. In all the time we've been together, he's looked over Sarina and I, telling us stories about how his homeland was and how we'd go live there. He protected me, helped bandage me, risked his life trying to get medicine when I was shot, and then, just when we finally thought we may be able to catch our breath, we awoke 200 years in the future and discovered he was the only one left. Can you imagine what that feels like? We're the last augments, and he's the last of his species. So yes, I'm doing this for him, but mostly, I'm doing it because an entire civilization was burned with acid and ravaged to the point nothing will be able to grow there. Ever. Can you even imagine how it is? How it feels watching a planet be killed and not being able to do anything?"

“I can imagine better than you think.” Bashir’s voice was apologetic as he nodded, his eyes flashing with guilt. Julian wondered what the older him had been through. “We’ll help you, though it won’t matter. Based on the odds, the Federation and Cardassia don’t have much longer in my timeline either.”

"What do you mean?"

“We’re at war with the Dominion, Julian. The numbers never come out well for us. Even when we win. I’ve been calculating our odds, but since nobody knew I was an augment until  _ now, _ I wasn’t even able to discuss it. I’ve known for months now we’re all bound to die.”

"Yet you say the Dominion could be responsible, which means sooner or later the Federation will win, or else they wouldn’t be changing the past. And by taking Garak, me and Sarina out of the equation, along with the whole of Cardassia, the odds changed. Don't you see?” he grabbed Bashir's shoulders, getting excited and not quite able to stop himself from bouncing on his heels. “We're the key to winning the war, doctor! Let's see. The only one you don't know yet is her, so... her presence must have changed something."

In the corner of the room, something silver caught doctor Bashir's attention, who grabbed Julian’s arm tightly, expressing growing tight. 

He whispered urgently in Kardassi, and Julian couldn’t help but wonder what Bashir’s relationship with Garak was. Had he learned Cardassia for him? "We should talk somewhere else, and in a language that’s not in the UT database."

“Why?” Julian asked as he raised an eyebrow. He leaned in as he took in the mix of fear and excitement mixing in his gaze. For a moment it finally felt like looking in a mirror. 

“Because I think you’re right.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay for those who were screaming 'founders!' since some chapters ago! 
> 
> Comments and kudos make us so happy, especially since is such a long and plot-heavy story :)


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Julian and Bashir have a confrontation, and finally realize they may not be that different after all.
> 
> \-----------
> 
> "That doesn't mean allowing Sarina to end up like that is right. I can't allow it. Just look at her! She is the one who built the five ships we used to escape Earth! She’s brilliant, she designed them all. " Julian almost shouted.
> 
> "Ships? Only one left Earth. There was only one augmented ship." While most history lessons had bored him to death, the one about Khan were the ones Bashir had paid attention to. Too much attention. He knew the toll had been over 3000 deaths on the island, and only the Botany Bay had left Earth.
> 
> If things were not as he had studied, Bashir realized, they were in even bigger trouble. There could easily be four augmented colonies out there, already preparing an invasion. All the quadrant could be on the verge of collapse. He felt his blood go cold. Four more ships, and even if they were smaller than the Botany bay, at least 600 more people could have been spared, and if they had awoken before, they had had several years to build, to grow their numbers, to prepare an army, to... to...

Julian looked at him without understanding, scrunching his face up. Bashir sighed, gaze flicking down as his voice dropped. "Feed me fake data in English, while you walk me to your infirmary. Anything. Give the most erroneous calculations you can muster. Now."

“All right. So, you see, the blotonic pest that affected Vulcan last year...” He kept at it until they arrived behind locked doors. Bashir started pacing across the room, gaze narrowing tightly.

“What was all that about?” Julian switched to Kardassi again.

“That silver shadow was a founder. They’re here for some reason, so your theory is at least partially right.” Bashir grabbed his hair and pulled it, frustrated, his other hand sliding down his face. He seemed close to terrified.

"Obviously something we three have done in the future has pissed them off. Tell me about them."

“I can’t imagine Sarina has.“ Doctor Bashir said softly, the anger in his gaze slowly melting. He remembered now where had he seen her photograph, what he’d read about her. He shook his head, gaze far away. “We don’t know a lot to be honest, other than they’re smarter than us and all information is shared between them. They can become anything, since they are shapeshifters, and they’re quite difficult to kill.”

"Become? Could they be impersonating any of us? I need a way to test the crew then."

“They can’t fake blood. And that might be a good idea. I hate to say it, but I think you’re right. The issue is figuring out how the three of us play into it.”

"So you haven't crossed them yet. Something we do in the future will get their attention."

“Garak has, by trying to blow up their planet with me on it, but I haven’t and Sarina... I don’t know her yet.” His voice grew tight, the words burning in his throat. He’d read the report, he knew who she was, but saying he didn’t know her gave him at least a bit of space, a separation between the lively girl and the one he knew was waiting for him in his future.

"Is your ship here? If there's a database, we could figure out something, search for her."

Bashir didn’t quite meet his eyes. "I may need to talk to my captain about this first."

“Of course. Sarina said you recognized her. I’d like to see the archives about her.”

“Yes, but... in my world her augmentation went wrong. She grew up in an institution.”

Julian’s head snapped up, gaze sharp as he took a few steps closer to him. "What do you mean 'wrong'?"

“She is borderline catonic, she’s been like that since she was 3. She lives in her own head most of the time. Brilliant, but completely overstimulated by the world around her. She’s not... she’s not the Sarina you have here.” Dr. Bashir’s tone was almost apologetic, any of the fight that had been there before gone.

"I won't correct the timeline only to ruin all of our lives. I won't allow her to end like that."

“Then you might have to choose between your lives and Cardassia, I’m afraid.” Bashir’s voice was pained, hands shaking and words choked off.

"Maybe I'll figure out how to solve everything. Who are you to say your timeline is the right one anyway? Maybe it’s wrong too." There was something petulant in Julian’s voice, but deep down, the emotion was fear. 

Bashir shook his head, closing his eyes for a few seconds. Then he looked at him, gaze soft and apologetic. “I wish to god it wasn’t, but you already said you think you’re the one out of time. You said there’s data to backup your claim.”

"That doesn't mean allowing her to end up like that is right. I can't allow it. Just look at her! She is the one who built the five ships we used to escape Earth! She’s brilliant, she designed them all. "

" _ Ships _ ? Only one left Earth. There was only one augmented ship." While most history lessons had bored him to death, the one about Khan were the ones Bashir had paid attention to. Too much attention. He knew the toll had been over 3000 deaths on the island, and only the Botany Bay had left Earth.

If things were not as he had studied, Bashir realized, they were in even bigger trouble. There could easily be four augmented colonies out there, already preparing an invasion. All the quadrant could be on the verge of collapse. He felt his blood go cold. Four more ships, and even if they were smaller than the Botany bay, at least 600 more people could have been spared, and if they had awoken before, they had had several years to build, to grow their numbers, to prepare an army, to... to...

“That doesn’t matter right now! Who cares if it was one or five ships!” Julian still was not understanding the gravity of the situation. Bashir felt the urge to cry. “Would you have that mind waste away in a Federation prison? Why didn’t you do anything to help her or the others like us —“

Bashir gently grabbed him by the shoulders, hands trembling and voice watery now. "There are no others like us! At least not out in the open. I hid this for years until you just told everyone. I will be expelled from the Federation now, thanks to you. Being me is still illegal." His voice was rising, tears starting to slide down his face. Bashir hit a wall with a closed fist and then just leaned on it, forehead against the cold surface, shoulders trembling.

Julian felt his blood run cold, imagining Sarina and other augments locked up again, not allowed in the world. “Why would they all be locked up? That — so things aren’t better in your reality for people like us.”

“I’m not …” Bashir trailed off, flushing as shame started to make his stomach twist. 

Julian took doctor Bashir's hand, squeezing it softly. He was angry at this version of himself, disappointed but at the same time … he couldn’t be. Not when he was so broken and didn’t even seem to realize it.

"Yes, us."

Bashir shivered a bit and closed his eyes, trying to calm his nerves. “My parents always said I was lucky because they found a good doctor. A  _ discrete  _ doctor. They were more worried about going to jail than about hurting me in the process.”

Julian met Bashir’s gaze and gave him a crooked smile. Yes, their parents were certainly the same. "Mine told me I should be grateful they decided to have me enhanced instead of throwing me into an institution or sending me away to God knows where. That they’ve been tempted."

“I... the ones raised at the institute. I was always told that the enhancements had gone wrong and they weren’t able to live outside of it as a result, either because there was too much stimulus or not enough, or … just a lot of other ridiculous things I should’ve questioned, especially as a doctor. I was told that I was … better.” Bashir looked a bit ashamed by the admission.

"Look at Sarina. She lives in the real world. She’s my sister now, my family." Doctor Bashir was thrown by the sheer affection he saw in Julian's eyes. Had he forgotten what it felt to love like that? Was he really the  _ correct _ version?

Bashir swallowed a few times and thought of Garak. He thought of what he wanted to tell him. “I... I almost told my Elim. About what they did to me. About how I was different. But I was so terrified.”

"If your Elim is like my Elim, not only he already knows, he doesn't care."

Bashir bit his lip, gaze more vulnerable. He’d been hiding his feelings so long, now he felt he couldn’t keep them in anymore. His voice was a terrified whisper. “You think?”

"He's the only person I know that can win against an augment. He may be a genius even for his species standards. Yes, he knows. And maybe... maybe he knew deep down this was bound to happen. Maybe he tried to prevent it, in his own, inhuman way, even if that was by trying to blow up a planet."

“That... that we’d have to fix the future? The war? I... I was so hurt. He was willing to do that on a chance...”

Julian gave him a flat look, not quite able to understand the hypocrisy. "You're willing to let his planet be burned, too. I could show you the images, so you know what happened in this timeline."

Bashir shook his head, eyes widening is a slow growing horror. “I’m not. If you’re telling the truth, I’ll do what I can. I’ve done the math. I... I was in love with my Elim.”

"Were? I think you still are, or you wouldn't have reacted as you did when you saw us." Julian embraced him, as his older self shook violently.

“I... am but... he was willing to... if it were just... how do I accept that?” Bashir let out a low groan, balling his hands into fists. “No, sorry, you’re just a child. You haven’t seen what I have.” 

"I lived through the war. I hid for years, living alone a whole year in basements and bombarded houses. I traveled the whole world because there was no place safe for me. I'm hardly a child anymore."

“Of course, I suppose in some ways you’re older than me.” Bashir let out a dry laugh, looking a touch sheepish. It was strange, seeing his own face like this. “What would you do, then, if your Elim tried to blow up a planet to stop a war that would cost far more lives?”

"I'd ask him why. Because he's a man that would never do anything without reason."

Bashir smiled softly, gaze understanding. “You really are me. We’ll fix our future.”

"Just... Don't let Sarina end up in an institution. She belongs among the stars."

Bashir remembered the photo he’d seen of the other augments. The pale skin, the sad eyes, cracked lips. The life this girl had on the Enterprise, the energy, that brightness that was just hers... he wanted to prevent her from losing it. “If I can prevent it I will. I don’t want that life for her. Not now that I have proof that I’m not... I thought I was the only one. But maybe the institute was the problem all along.”

Julian got pensive again, brow furrowing. "You say these founders can impersonate anything or anybody. Could they have manipulated the Klingon? The war against Cardassia didn't make sense."

“Easily. They can and they did in my timeline as well.”

”We tried to pierce it together for almost a year with Spock, and always felt something was missing. Now I see why. We had not taken into account they could take his shape, so we were investigating mental posesion amongst other possibilities. We even went as far as searching for rogue Vulcans.” The surprise Sybok had felt when his half brother called him!

Bashir interrupted his musings, voice barely more than a whisper. "Did you find the other augments? You say there were 5 ships."

If there were augment colonies unaccounted for, then the quadrant was ready to get into a massive war that'd throw it into an easily conquered chaos.

"We lost contact but Sarina was behind their design, so I'm sure they’re somewhere. They were a bit smaller than the Botany Bay, but still at least 500 people should have been able to leave Earth."

"And now they've probably formed a colony to go to war with the Federation, another useful distraction."

"We only awoke one year ago. There's a chance they are still in space." Julian didn’t sound convinced, worrying his lip. Bashir met his gaze, his own expression grim.

“I think we both know that’s not true, Julian.”

There was a reason the former Cardassian territory was forbidden, even if not all the habitable planets in the region had been ravaged. Some moons had not been subjected to the acid, and yet there had not been reports of Klingon colonization on them.

Both Julians knew. They just knew where those ships were now.

"There's a chance those ships had a founder on board that awoke them earlier and is preparing them for war too, Bashir. He may have been impersonating one of my friends 200 years ago." Now that he thought about it, Leon was one of Khan’s guards. How come he wasn’t in the Botany Bay? Had his first augmented friend been an illusion?

"Yes, I was thinking the same thing. I suppose then it's time we talk to both of our captains."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're nearing the end arch!
> 
> Comments and kudos are love.


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Defiant and the Enterprise crews join their efforts to understand what is going on.
> 
> \--------
> 
> "So, wait, Rasputin...?" Garak wondered softly, glancing between a few files with a reproachful stare.
> 
> "Who?" Sisko looked at him. The files on the Russian revolution were certainly different.
> 
> "I can't believe it, Julian, the one human you compared me to, and he didn't even exist in the correct timeline!" Despite the seriousness of the situation, Julian snorted at that and let out a quick chuckle.
> 
> “Sorry, next time I’ll make sure to pick a real shady character for you.”

When Sisko answered to Jadzia’s call and went to the Defiant, he found it quite a bit more crowded than when they arrived. Two versions of his medical officer were looking at each other, a small engineer talking animatedly to a shocked Miles, and, most surprising of all, Garak pacing the room as if he owned the place, dressed as a security officer and with the Enterprise badge. He stopped moving when he saw Sisko arrive, smiling that treacherous grin they all knew too well.

“Oh, you must be Benjamin Sisko. Jadzia here has been telling me a lot about you.” He gave a little bow, smirk only growing wider as he did.

“Can somebody explain to me what exactly is going on?”

“It depends. If we turn our UTs off, will you be able to understand any other language than English?” Julian, the youngest looking one, looked apologetically at him. They were all having a hard time communicating, but it was better than risking a founder overhearing them.

“I am fluent in Bajoran, Trill and Vulcan and know a bit of Klingon, would that help?”

Spock, who had been until that moment in a corner talking with Odo and Worf, nodded and folded his arms on his back. “Yes, and I think I’ve pierced enough of this story already to give you a full report, sir. From what I understand, you may be able to help us fix this.”

Spock recounted to him everything they’ve learned so far, and was certainly pleased to see Sisko was more versed in history than both versions of Bashir.

“Wait a minute, Spock. Year 2024, the Bell Riots. What... did those even  _ happen _ ? I was there with doctor Bashir. I... I had to take Gabriel Bell's place to keep the timeline safe.”

Spock connected the Defiant database with the Enterprise one and shook his head, showing how the records showed different information. He scanned all the reports of that year, and none reported that incident. “Seems we found yet another discrepancy. Those riots never happened in our timeline. After the fall of the augments, the power vacuum made humans break into factions, and the Third World War started a bit afterward, from the year 2002 to roughly 2047. The first contact with Vulcan was in 2085. Three human generations lived their entire lives at war, so it took almost 40 years for the planet to recover.”

Sisko looked at the files. “No, that’s not right. The Third World War was from 2026 to 2053, following the turmoil of the riots. First contact was in 2063. It took only 10 years to recover.”

They looked at the reports. So many more humans had died in Julian's timeline than in Bashir's. It was shocking. Earth had been left with less than half its population after the war, so starting over had been difficult.

“And these aliens? You know who they are? They were there in the First Contact.” Spock showed him the photos McCoy had unearthed one year ago, a slight frown on his face.

“Those are borg.” Jadzia whispered as she looked at the photos, her eyes widening as she took them in. There was no way … but then there shouldn’t be any way for all of this. “That didn’t happen in our timeline, we... We encountered them less than 10 years ago! Who... who flew the Phoenix?”

Julian pressed some more buttons, as the captain swallowed tightly, jaw tightening as he looked over his shoulder. The photos from the Defiant showed a smiling pair of humans, preparing to depart to the atmosphere. “According to this, Zephran Cochrane and Lily Sloane.” He looked for the same reports on the Enterprise. “But here it says in that ship, Cochrane was with... Geordi LaForge and William Riker? Who are they?”

“Those are commanders in the Enterprise D, a ship currently in service in our time. But they haven’t gone to the past, not that I know of.” Jadzia searched for the files, not finding anything about why they were there.

“Maybe that hasn’t happened yet.” Garak looked at the photos, pensive. He leaned in, raising an eyebrow as he took in the minute differences between the men. “It seems this man... Geordi, has a different headwear in all the reports you’re looking at. And he looks younger.”

They had no way of knowing then if the Enterprise D had her timeline changed or not, not yet anyway.

Sarina was already inputting data on a padd, making a graph. “So, we can’t prove or not prove anything about that particular event, except that they didn’t travel to the past in your timeline,  _ and _ that those borg, whoever they are, were in  _ our _ timeline but not yours. Next thing. Why would they want to avoid the Bell Riots?”

Bashir was already comparing the events, looking at files at a terrifying speed. Sisko raised an eyebrow at that, shooting the doctor a curious look. “I can read very fast, I’ll explain later, captain. Those 22 years in which we were not in space saw the disappearance of several species. The Federation Julian got in this timeline is a lot less diverse, and I believe their technology suffered because of that. The original Enterprise, commanded by captain Archer, encountered a lot less alien species in their first travels, and the Vulcans were a lot more... Amicable, it seems, in his timeline."

Julian kept reading, matching his other self speed. Sisko really wondered if there was something about his CMO he had been unaware of all these years. "Yes, there are more technological exchanges in your timeline, captain Sisko, than in ours. Oh, look Sarina! Computers certainly are so basic in our universe in comparison."

“No, I can’t believe it! They had  _ this _ tech already in the year 2100? I can’t believe it, Scotty and I have been working on it without success for months!”

They kept comparing their files, and what Spock had been starting to pierce proved right: several leaders had been severely compromised during the last years. 

"So, wait, Rasputin...?" Garak wondered softly, glancing between a few files with a reproachful stare.

"Who?" Sisko looked at him. The files on the Russian revolution were certainly different.

"I can't believe it, Julian, the one human you compared me to, and he didn't even exist in the correct timeline!" Despite the seriousness of the situation, Julian snorted at that and let out a quick chuckle.

“Sorry, next time I’ll make sure to pick a real shady character for you.”

Sarina looked at her notes, biting her lip as she took in the differences, both large and small. "So, what I have so far is: several wiped out civilizations, including Andorians and Tellarites, two of the original five members of the Federation. Less technology advancements and diversity. Our Universal Translators are certainly a lot less advanced than the ones I see in the files, those developed by... Hoshi Sato, it said? That woman didn’t board the NX-01 according to our records, and the first contacts were a lot more scarce because of that. At least 125 leaders in 30 planets that either didn't exist or changed wildly to then die in mysterious circumstances. And... The Augments. Garak, I think I know where they are."

"In Cardassian territory, yes. I got to the same conclusion."

Julian shook his head quickly, thinking back to his time in Botany Bay. He’d been a fool. "And I think Leon was no guard. If he boarded one of the ships... He has an army now."

Bashir looked at him sharply, gently grabbing one of his shoulders. "And if a founder was on the Enterprise following us, he’s probably calling him to invade. We need to talk to Kirk."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the slight delays! these weeks are certainly proving to be challenging for all of us.
> 
> Comments and kudos are love!


	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the final battle approaches, goodbyes are in order.
> 
> \--------------------------
> 
> "Take care of our little ship when time reboots and I'm not here to help you." Sarina looked at Scotty with sad eyes. He'd been a father, and life without him was a terrifying prospect.
> 
> "I will. You go fix the future so you can sail with yer fancy future one, lad. The Enterprise will always miss you."

Kirk listened to the story while the Defiant crew took care of the rigged tribble. They had a mission after all, and even if they were bent on fixing the timeline, it was still a good idea to make sure Kirk stayed alive. It was good that Spock had taught him his mother tongue, so they at least had a slight hope their conversation was not being decoded so easily.

"If what you're telling us is true, I think we need the whole Federation fleet in that area. Our strength will have to be in the numbers, not in the technology, since it's obvious we've fallen behind severely. And I’m afraid our numbers are already depleted compared to the ones you’re showing me."

Garak decided to intercede. "I think we should go somewhere else, though."

"Somewhere else, mister Garak?" Kirk looked at him with curiosity, raising an eyebrow as he took in the unusually serious look on the man’s face. If his security chief was so sure, it was obvious there was a reason for it. He trusted his feelings and instincts.

"Yes. To Bajor. I think that planet is the beginning and the end of it all. And I think somebody will be there waiting for us."

As Kirk made arrangements with Starfleet, communicating their findings without quite mentioning the changes to the timeline nor the existence of the Founders. Meanwhile Garak and Sisko were locked in a room, deciding what to do.

"So, according to the records, you're considered some sort of... Religious figure for the Bajorans?"

"I see even in this reality you are not fond of them.”

"On the contrary, I have no idea who they are. I'm just surprised a man from the Federation rose to a religious status. Seems a bit out of character for a starfleet officer, but then again, I only know the captains of this timeline and their core values."

"If you're implying I somehow conned them..." Sisko felt the urge to snap at this this version of Garak too. Certainly that man made him nervous no matter when they were.

"My, my, captain, I was just stating a fact, no need to get like that. I was wondering, if someone was expecting us, you as... How did they call you?"

"The Emissary." Sisko just knew Garak was feeling a lot of pleasure by making him say it again. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. After all, this wasn’t his Garak, technically. 

"Ah, yes. I'm asking if you, as Emissary of the Prophets, are either in contact with those beings out of time, or have a, let’s call it a superior intuition of where someone could be if they were waiting for us."

"And what do you think it will be?"

"I still don't know, but if both our timelines are still standing, it means whoever was trying to wipe yours have failed, and beings so thorough would only fail if one of their own decided to interfere." 

" _ Odo. _ And I know where he'll be."

"We'll buy you time. I know this battle will be our last." Kirk looked at them seriously, no tremor in his voice or fear in his gaze. Only sorrow. 

Julian nodded, swallowing back tears as he looked at them all. This was the last time he'd see his Captain, his chief medical officer, his friends from a time that was not theirs. "Captain, I believe you'll see a red headed man, Leon, with a big scar on his face amongst the Augments. He's the changeling. And he's probably even more dangerous than Khan."

He hesitated and let out a small sigh, strangled a bit by holding back his tears. His friends were about to give their lives for them, what could he do to tell them how much it meant? 

"We know, doctor. Don't worry. We're doing this knowingly. It's just the logical thing to do." Spock took his hand, and Julian impulsively hugged him.

"We'll make sure your sacrifice is worthy." Garak took the Captain's hand, grip firm. He gave him a small, genuine smile. "All that's left to say is that it was an honor serving you."

"And it was an honor having you three with us." Bones said softly, as Julian hugged him too.

"Take care of our little ship when time reboots and I'm not here to help you." Sarina looked at Scotty with sad eyes. He'd been a father, and life without him was a terrifying prospect.

"I will. You go fix the future so you can sail with yer fancy future one, lad. The Enterprise will always miss you."

The Defiant parted, with the cloak on, just as the federation fleet arrived to Cardassia and discovered what had been hidden. A fleet, decloaking, and several warships of an unknown design. 

Each and every monitor turned on, and Khan's face filled the screens.

"Hello captain, long time no see."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This time wrath of Khan surely looks different!
> 
> Comments and kudos are love!


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Khan returns.

"Hello Khan, I hope life in Alpha Ceti V has been as much of a paradise as it seemed when we left you there."

Kirk knew this would be their last stand. Even with the Federation fleet behind him with more ships coming out of warp every minute to join the battle, the sensor readings indicated the fleet that had just decloaked in what used to be Cardassia was unlike anything they'd ever seen. The mix of augmented brilliance and future technology brought by the Founders made it the deadliest one the galaxy had ever seen. Flanking Khan and a red-haired man were several aliens they hadn't encountered yet, but from what captain Sisko had told them, Kirk recognized immediately. Jem'hadar. 

"Yes, yes, that planet was certainly a nice retreat, but when my people came to me asking for guidance, I couldn't deny it to them. You know how it is when duty calls, my captain."

"Yes, I imagine. Yet I see you have some new friends that were not there last time I checked."

"Oh, them? Just some friendly new allies, I hope they are from your liking." Khan signaled at them, opening his arms. He knew Kirk knew who they were. He wanted to savor the hopelessness that man was now subjected to.

"I'd like to see the true face of the man standing at your side. I know for a fact he's not what he seems."

Khan smiled far too wide. "An astute observation. Who found it out? Julian or Garak?” He waited, enjoying Kirk’s silence. Ah, yes, probably Julian then. The good doctor had likely been devastated when he discovered his friend had betrayed him. “From what I heard Garak has been a bit sad after discovering what we did to his people. Well, not  _ us _ , I shouldn’t take the credit. I was asleep when my dear friend here did it."

The man turned into what Kirk knew was a founder. How could a being change shape so easily? It would be astonishing if they weren’t enemies. “So, tell me, captain. What did Julian say when he discovered I was not really human? And I’d really appreciate it if you told me where the Defiant is.”

“The Defiant? Never heard of it. Although we have a nice ship called the Reliant, you may be referring to that one.”

“Please, captain, we’re both too smart for that. Just tell us what captain Sisko’s plans are.” Khan smiled brightly, eyes shining. “I heard in another timeline I was responsible for killing Spock. Did they tell you that? Are you really sure you want to risk that one being restored?” Kirk grew pale but remained silent, not daring to look at his second in command. Instead he kept his eyes locked on Khan. He would not react, he would not give him the pleasure. “From what I know, it was radiation poisoning. So, so painful. He restored the warp core but in the process he died. He was inside it, you couldn’t even touch him, separated as you were by a glass. Oh! But wait, it seems there was another one, and in that one, you were the one who died, separated from him. So, which one do you prefer? Either way, you can’t be together at the moment of your death.”

“I prefer duty, Khan. So, what are the plans? Galaxy wide conquest? Plain, simple revenge? And also, are you really that sure the Founders won’t make you his servant once this is all over? You could end up like the Vorta or the Jem’hadar, I’m sure you’re aware of that.”

“Oh, I’m not sure there’s room for any more improvement on us. But this is a... mutually beneficial relationship.”

Bones intervened, voice surprisingly steady. “I’m sure they said the same to the Cardassians, and yet I imagine there’s a reason why they bombed their planet and killed every single one of them in this reality.”

The Founder smiled coldly, expression empty. How could a face almost featureless still be so expressive and terrifying, it was beyond them. “I think the difference will be that the augments are smart enough to know how to play their cards right. About Cardassia, we made a mistake by keeping Dukat alive in so many timelines, although I’m sure that means nothing for you. This time, this timeline is the perfect one. We won’t fail, and you will not live to see another day. Unless you decide to surrender, of course.”

“You know what our answer will be.” Kirk felt Spock’s mind telling him that the entire fleet was already there. This was their last battle. But at least, of all the options, his death would be at the side of Spock, not separated by a glass, watching him slowly fade away. 

“Too bad, captain, I was hoping we’d be able to talk like civilized men.” Khan gave him one last smile.

The weapons in the flagship came to alive as the transmission stopped.

Kirk looked at Spock one last time, grinning even as his gaze grew heavy. 

“It’s the logical thing to do, my t’hy’la. We will not survive, but we will meet again in yet another timeline.”

Kirk ordered his crew to open fire. 

That night, the Federation fell, 200 ships destroyed by the fleet the augments had built in the last 200 years, guided by the Founders, trained by the jem’hadar.

“Where to now, my friend?” Khan looked at the founder at his side. He still needed... it, but he hoped not for long. The augments would all follow him if he ordered them to rebel. Now it was a matter of time, whether they were able to stop the Defiant or not.

“Bajor. We have one last matter to attend to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only 4 chapters left!!
> 
> Comments and kudos are love!


	27. Chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Defiant crew lands on Bajor, and before getting to their final destination, they talk about their present, their past, and what the future may hold for them.
> 
> _After dinner, Julian and Garak went out, just to see the lights and the fireworks. When Bashir joined them, Garak spoke in an even voice. "Will my people really destroy all this?"_
> 
> _"Not destroy, but it certainly came close. They ravaged the lands and people for years. Eventually the Bajorans succeed in rebellion but ... they lost much in the meantime.”_
> 
> _"I can see why we'd form an alliance with the Founders after that, then. Cardassia didn't learn anything at all." This Garak really was different, even if he seemed like the same person. "Do you think there's any future where both Bajorans and Cardassians survive?"_
> 
> _Bashir nodded, a sense of sereneness coming over him. "I do. I believe there is room in the universe for both, as they are. I wonder if there's a place for all of us."_
> 
> _Julian swallowed quickly, barely whispering. "Do you think the timeline will believe that too?"_
> 
> _"We can only hope so." Bashir admitted as he looked down at his feet._

They landed on Bajor a few miles away from the place they had to visit, the dust peeling up from the ground. Julian walked out and swallowed tightly, hands shaking as he wondered what this captain thought they’d find on this empty planet. “Where to?”

"I think... There should be a monastery. We’ll have to disguise ourselves, this planet is prewarp." Sisko handed them all cloaks. "With any luck, they have no idea what a Cardassian is, since not even doctor Bashir will be able to hide your scales completely. For your luck, Mister Garak."

"Whatever we did to this planet in this timeline, we’re extinct so we're not guilty, and I won't carry those sins with me."

“Of course. Protect yourself still. We don’t know who’s here or what they might know. The Founders have certainly bent the rules before.” Sisko warned them in a low voice as Bashir worked on giving him a ridged nose, and Julian followed suit, learning the technique immediately and working on Sarina. She glanced at the side in search of a mirror immediately, curious to see how she looked now.

"These... wormhole aliens, can you talk to them at will? Do they tell you things? Can I... can I talk too?" Julian asked a thousand questions per minute as they kept working, words practically tripping over themselves.

“Sometimes they talk to me when I ask. Typically they choose when it comes to you.” Sisko looked at his reflection thoroughly. Yes, he certainly looked Bajoran. Quite fitting.

"Why?" Julian looked at Bashir frowning tightly, as he finished with the noses of the rest of them. He was quite sure his future self had done at least something to get the aliens to not quite like him.

Bashir raised an eyebrow, biting his lip. He didn’t like the way he was looking at him. “Because they’re... I didn’t do anything!” He almost cut off a scale on Garak’s neck in his hurry.

Miles raised an eyebrow, nudging him with a flat look. “You did try to get the Jem’Hadar to leave them.”

"Love, this is hardly the time to be focusing on those things." Garak shot knives from his eyes. Really, he had no idea what the two Julians had talked about, but surely the rivalry was still there. He was also surprised at his look but well, he’d donned stranger ones for previous jobs. At least this time he didn't have to wear antennae.

They walked out of the Defiant, watching as the wind got the dust to dance around them, following an old but neat road.

“Fine, fine. I’m sorry that the other Bashir upset the all powerful aliens.” Julian huffed as he moved closer to Garak. Bashir rolled his eyes, taking a step closer to Miles even as he gave the other man a short look.

He wondered if he'd have to give up Garak once the timeline was corrected. Certainly he'd never gotten to that level of closeness with his own, and even if his time had something wrong too, everything pointed to the fact that he was living in the one with less bloodbath. Julian’s had seen the demise of far more races than his own. Was it too much to ask of him to accept the only relationship he'd really wanted was out of his reach?

Bashir shook his head, trying to push the thoughts away. After all, he didn’t — the future was more important than his own happiness. Maybe, as deeply as he felt for Garak, there was a reason they couldn’t be together. Some cosmic disaster their love created. He grinned awkwardly at Jadzia, trying to keep his voice even. “Maybe we’ll get lucky and Odo will already know how to fix everything.”

"We can only hope. For now I think we may need to pass the night somewhere." 

A small village was ahead, with lights on and what sounded like a street celebration. The wind carried the smell of festive food, one that Sisko always found irresistible. The smell of home. 

“It seems like they’re celebrating something. Maybe that’s a good sign.” Julian whispered softly to Garak, squeezing his arm somewhat possessively.

"Bajor used to be a simple and religious society, before Cardassia invaded. Not only we're before that time, but in this timeline they seem to have been spared the pain." Sisko said in an even tone. It was not fair to impose that on this Garak and he knew that.

“So I guess this timeline isn’t worse for everyone.” Bashir grit out, not quite able to keep himself from thinking of Major Kira.

"No timeline can be bad for everyone. I'm sure millions on this Earth are happier now than they were in yours, even if in my timeline war ravaged the land worst. Individual lives will not always follow the pattern of the big picture, and some can be happy even during the hardest times." Sarina looked at Bashir sympathetically, taking his hand. "You didn't show me the files about me, back in the Defiant. Why?"

He swallowed tightly, blinking a few times. He knew this question would come up, but had no idea how to respond. “I... you’re... the future I’m from is far worse for you than the one you’re in now. You’re... things are different.”

"You seemed shaken when you saw me. Am I...dead? Did  _ that _ hurt you?" She still kept holding his hand, as if he was the one that needed comfort. How could he just condemn her to the future he knew was in store? In the face of death, this girl was worried about leaving him alone.

“No, you’re... borderline catatonic. We’ve never met, but I’ve read your files. You don’t speak to anyone, you barely interact with the other people at the institution you’re in. I’m sorry to be the one to tell you all of this. Your augmentation went wrong.”

"What are my talents? Why would they send me back if I don't seem to be a danger, then? Surely I must have crossed them somehow."

“You’re very good with numbers, from what I read, but that’s it. Your file doesn’t talk much about your talents or your personality. You’re an enigma.”

"To my caretakers, perhaps. But clearly not to the Founders. Do you think I'll have to resign all if we restore time? Too bad, I like building ships." She smiled but her voice trembled, fear bright in her eyes. "Make sure not to be alone, Julian. I fear what would become of you without your sister. I know how you can be when you're alone."

“I... now that I know... I’ll try... I won’t let you suffer.” His voice trembled, guilt overcoming him. He let out a dry laugh. “This is what I become, I suppose. No wonder you’re worried.”

"This is what loneliness and pain made of you, nothing else. You're still the same Julian, and I'm still proud of being your sister." She kept their fingers intertwined as they walked to the town. "And I know you'd do anything to make things right."

He bit his lip, nodding quickly and then hurrying her along. She was right. He needed to do what was right, no matter the cost to either of themselves. Bashir glanced at Julian, who clung to Garak’s side and held him close. “Come with me.”

Julian and Garak nodded, and got closer to Bashir. Garak smiled and used that expression that was so painfully familiar. "Something wrong, dear?"

“I — you’re very close. It’s a bit much, considering the seriousness of our mission.”

Jadzia rolled her eyes, but there was something sad to her gaze as she moved between them.

"Want us to move a bit to the left?" Julian looked confused, pulling Garak with him as he took a step away from Bashir.

“No, it’s fine.” Bashir looked embarrassed, smiling sheepishly as he drifted away from them. He kept his hands together and reminded himself to stay focused. They needed to find a place to rest. Surely he needed it.

Jadzia gave them both a crooked smile, walking between both doctors. “He’s jealous.”

"Wha-? But, I... I thought you were still angry at your Garak." Julian smiled more softly this time, giving himself a wry look. What was going on in that head of his? "I think you can still fix things with him."

“He won’t let me in. He doesn’t want me any closer than I am.” Bashir said with a hint of regret, glancing down at the dust moving back and forth at his feet. “And what he did... I fear we might not be as compatible as the two of you. But enough of that, we need to find a hotel.”

Garak smiled at his Julian softly. "Doctor, this Julian is the most insistent man I've ever met. I think you'd find that your me is just waiting for you to invade a bit his personal space and shout some insults in Kardassi."

They heard singing as they entered a street fair. Children played around, food was being cooked, everybody looked innocent and happy. Jadzia wished Kira was there to see her people before evil descended from the sky.

“Trust me, I’ve tried something close to that several times.” Julian gave him a crooked smile, familiar and not at all at the same time. Then he slipped away, following Sisko through a street. Jadzia swallowed a bit and shook her head before following.

Sarina walked over to join her friends, linking her arms with Julian. “You’re lonely and I’m a ghost, apparently.”

"And I seem to have attempted an act of war. Although considering what these Founders have done to the Alpha Quadrant, I still think that the other me may have had a point."

“You would.” Julian said dryly, but with just enough affection to make it clear he didn’t quite mind. “And I would stop you, or at least talk you out of it."

"Yes, somehow I think it's more likely that big Klingon over there knocked me out while you didn't even suspect." Garak smiled brightly at Worf and waved, who just answered to his gesture with a groan.

Sisko entered a small shop and came back, smiling warmly as he took in the people around him. 

The group gathered around him and Garak spoke in a low voice. "So, where do you think we could pass the night, Captain?"

Around them the celebration continued, even though the sun was setting. Some street artists were singing and dancing, and people cheered and sang along, unsuspecting of what could happen, would happen, may happen to their planet.

“This inn is willing to lend us a few rooms in exchange for sharing in their celebration. Luckily the one we came across is about hospitality.” Sisko smiled softly, already eager to join the cooks in their preparation.

"Oh! I can... I was a cook in a ship once. I can help you! do you think they'll mind me?" Sarina hurried to Sisko's side, smiling, already wanting to put her hands to work. She'd never been good at staying still, and somebody had to make sure food would be of the doctor's taste.

“I’m sure they won’t and I’d be happy to have some help. None of my crew ever takes an interest in cooking lessons.”

"Well, certainly Curzon did, Ben. Too bad you didn't let him put alcohol in every dish." Jadzia smiled warmly, leaning her head on his shoulder. "Why don't you go to your rooms to rest while they cook and Worf and I go around to gather information? We're a big group and that can draw attention."

“I think we will, thank you.” Julian yawned as he walked Garak up the stairs. Bashir followed a few minutes later, steps almost comically loud.

"You can drop the pretense, dear. I know how you can move if you want. Here, I'm afraid we were given a shared room." Garak rolled his eyes and didn't bother turning the lights on. He knew Bashir didn't need them, the same way Julian didn't.

Bashir huffed and entered, feet suddenly completely silent. He pushed past them and picked one of the beds by the wall. He laid down and closed his eyes, letting out a sharp breath. “It seems there’s no future where no society suffers.”

"No, but at least we're willing to sacrifice our happiness if that will fix things. I think you both made already the count of how many lives have been lost in our timeline that haven't been lost in yours, doctor." Garak looked at him sadly, seeing the way Bashir and Julian both shivered at his words. Not so different after all. "Giving up the life I have here in exchange of my homeland is certainly a small sacrifice."

"Even if they exiled you in both realities? You'd still sacrifice yourself?"

“Even then.”

“Then you’re not so different from my Garak.”

"Is that good or bad in your book, doctor?"

“Good.” Bashir admitted with a huff of breath.

"You should tell that to your Garak more often, then. Despite what you seem to think, we cardassians do have feelings."

“Rather you believe it or not, I tell him plenty. He asked me to forgive him for his past once, you know.”

"And you did? Really did?"

Bashir didn't dare look at him as he answered. He didn't want to see again that affection that was not for him, shouldn't be for him. “I did, now whether he believes that is another question entirely.”

Garak's expression grew soft. "He does. The same way I am believing you right now." Garak sat at his side and squeezed his hand, loving this mirrored version of his own Julian. "I think it's you who's terrified of being close to anybody. I imagine you keep chasing relationships you know will fail."

Julian bit his lip at that, stiffening — then he remembered this Garak already knew. There was nothing to hide, at least not for the moment. “I’m not allowed to be. If someone found out what I am... it would be the end of my career at Starfleet, possibly the end of my time as a Federation citizen.”

"Your Garak didn't abandon you, even though I'm sure he knew from the start. Now, if you met Tain, I'm sure Garak would be terrified of him using that information to ruin your life, and certainly he wouldn't want him to know about his feelings for you..."

“I... did meet Tain, yes.” Bashir admitted with a wince, gaze sheepish as he finally met Garak’s own. “I had to — he’d placed a wire in my Garak’s brain and it was killing him. He was the only one who knew how to safely remove it. I might have been able to figure it out in time — but there wasn’t time. You were... He was dying.”

Yes, that certainly sounded like Tain, and that wire sounded like the brain implants Cardassia was developing when he was exiled. But those were experimental at his time, meaning that most subjects just died horrible deaths for the sake of Cardassia. "I guess I'm lucky that technology didn't exist in my own homeland, then. Maybe the Founders guessed we wouldn't get close if you didn't have to open up my head. Tain... He'd use any information he could get to ruin anybody who got close to me."

“So you think that the reason my Garak hasn’t made a move is because of Tain, not my enhancements?” Julian’s voice was small and hopeful.

"I know it is. Your enhancements make you a special person, and certainly I love them in my Julian. Different doesn't mean less."

Bashir nodded and looked a touch less anxious than he did before. A hint of determination came into his gaze. “Thank you, Garak. If I get another chance after all of this, I won’t let him go this time.”

"You never suspected he could be trying to protect you? Never once wondered who Tain is?" Garak smiled at him. If this was the same man he knew, there was no way he wouldn't have pierced everything together already, at least at a subconscious level.

“I wondered but ... I’m not used to people trying to protect me. At least not unless it’s for their own interests.” Julian’s voice was tinged with bitterness for a moment. Then he glanced up at him, gaze wry. "That he’s your father? Yes, I was able to figure that out eventually. Would he really hurt me only to get to you?”

"Is there any being in the universe capable of causing more pain than a parent, Bashir? I was lucky the one in this timeline probably left me for dead."

“No, I don’t think there is. He didn’t leave you alone in mine. He constantly dangled the possibility of affection and a return home in front of you, and always pulled it away at the last minute.”

"Sounds like the father I know." Garak looked at him with infinite sorrow, Julian brushing his thumb softly along Garak’s wrist. "And I'm sure your Garak jumped at every chance to prove himself worthy." He looked at their intertwined hands and smiled softly. "I still regret that mine died while I was exiled and asleep, so I never got him to call me son."

Even after all his father put him through, all the pain, the terrible sins he made him commit, still Garak regretted not being able to ever get a bit of affection out of the old demon.

“I’m sorry, Garak. Truly.” Bashir’s gaze was warm and a bit wet, and he gave his hand a quick squeeze. “You deserved to hear that, and I’m sorry he wasn’t a better man. You are, though, here and where I’m from.”

"Yet, I think we both are  _ less _ in your timeline than in mine. I'm not sure you're living in the right time either, but in a tampered version as well. It looks like we both could have stopped the Founders several times if we've worked together." Garak's eyes suddenly filled with something new. He just knew. His was not the only unnatural timeline. They had been changed before. Maybe hundreds of times. All his life he'd felt  _ something _ was wrong, and now he was sure. The other Garak, the one from Bashir's timeline, felt that way too, and probably he'd tried to blow up a whole planet because of that. 

Bashir’s eyes shone almost in time with his, an understanding coming over him. His hands shook in Garak’s, his smile so tight it was almost painful. “Our timeline is a test too. Maybe closer to what would have been but... not right. That’s what you think.”

"Exactly! And maybe Sarina doesn't have to end like that then!" Julian jumped them from behind suddenly, eyes bright, putting his arms clumsily on their shoulders. He'd been patiently listening to the exchange, knowing that it may decide another Garak's fate, and he has been hoping it would. Now he knew it would decide the fate of all of them. "Maybe we can still save her."

"But if you can't, I'm ready to make that sacrifice." She was at the door, smiling sadly at them. None had heard her come in, but then again, it was not unusual with them augments.

Bashir glanced between them, letting go of Garak’s hand when he saw Julian. He shouldn’t be stealing Garak from this other him. He sat up straighter, rolling his shoulders a few times. “Sarina, I can’t make any promises, but I can’t imagine a future where you’re not yourself is the correct one.”

"And I can't imagine one where you're not together, but we must be ready to face that possibility. Are we all clear on that? We all must accept maybe there's no happy ending for any of us." She sat on the bed and hugged Bashir.

Bashir shook his head, shoulders slumping a little even as he returned the hug. “I’m not known for giving up that easily.”

"I know you'll find me and fix me, if my augmentation goes wrong. I know it. But if we find the right timeline requires a sacrifice... I will do it."

“I’d prefer it to be me, if one of us has to make that sacrifice.” Bashir offered, earning him a sharp glare from Garak and Sarina both.

"My, this suddenly turned into a competition." Garak smiled warmly, shaking his head in bemusement. "We won't know what we should give up until we reach the place and meet the person Sisko says is waiting, but we all are service people. I know we will do what's necessary."

“Of course. Tomorrow we’ll know the answer. I can only hope that this Odo knows what the other Founders are thinking.” Julian murmured with a sigh.

"And I hope you're hungry, since that's why I came here in the first place." Sarina smiled brightly, jumping to her feet. "The captain taught me some neat cooking tricks, but don't worry, Julians, I made sure not to put any of the things you don't like in your dishes. I can boldly say yours are the most boring Bajoran feast dishes in existence."

  
  


When they got to the main room, Sisko had already set the table for them, and was praying with the Bajorans, head bowed and words coming out easily from his mouth.

He really looked like a mystical being, light softly illuminating his face as he recited the thanks with the easiness of someone who's done it before several times, but hasn't lost faith in what he's saying.

Bashir dutifully bowed his own head as he sat down, eyes closed. He didn’t believe in Gods exactly, but he believed in Sisko. That was enough. Julian followed suit, not wanting to disrespect their hosts. This festival clearly had great meaning for them and for the Captain.

Garak looked curiously, until a pointed elbow sank at his side. Sarina muttered between gritted teeth in Kardassi, with affection. "Bend your head and follow Sisko, you oversized Ragnar."

“I was just appreciating the new experience. We haven’t had religion on Cardassia in centuries, and certainly you almost-humans haven't provided me with any religious experiences either.” He whispered as he bowed his head quickly. He wondered if the other Cardassia was the same as his or not.

"Appreciate it with your head down."

When the prayer finished, the inn owner took Sisko's hands between her own, moved. "We're so blessed to have a traveling vedek with us tonight. It's an honor to serve as your hosts."

“Thank you, my friend. I’m happy that I can share tonight’s celebrations with you.”

Bashir met Jadzia’s gaze across the table, just resisting the urge to raise an eyebrow. He supposed there wasn’t much difference between Vedek and emissary.

"You told me you're traveling to the northern temple? It's been abandoned for years now, although some say the spirit of a Prophet is living there, defending the village from the pah wraiths."

“May the Prophet protect us all.” Jadzia added in a solemn voice.

All the Bajorans around the table repeated her words, and Bashir looked at Garak curiously. He was not snorting or looking with contempt as the Garak he knew, but with genuine curiosity. Was that the influence he had had on that man? Was that what he'd deprived him of by having him at arms' length? This Garak was less bitter, more interested in the people around him, even though he'd suffered so much loss.

The owner of the inn looked at Julian and Bashir and smiled warmly, gaze curious. "Your mother must have been so blessed."

Bashir felt regret run through him, both for what he had kept from Garak and for what he might have lost himself. Bashir bit his lip and reminded himself to ask Sarina later if he lacked anything compared to Julian. Then he blinked owlishly, smiling awkwardly. “Yes, she had me and my brother 10 years apart. It was a miracle we look so much alike.”

"I thought you were twins! A blessing nonetheless. What caste are you in?"

"We're healers."

“Yes, and our sister here is a mechanic.” Julian added as he wrapped an arm around Sarina.

“And your partner?”

"I am a tailor." A tailor with a well concealed phaser inside his clothes, but a tailor anyway.

“How lovely, you all fix things. What a wonderful family, and what a blessing indeed.”

Bashir swallowed a little as he glanced down at his fork. A family. Miles cleared his throat, nudging him with his arm in what he guessed was an odd attempt at comfort.

"We just hope to make the world a bit better." Sarina smiled, feeling fear go up her throat but swallowing it down. She was ready to sacrifice herself. She was.

The Bajoran woman nodded, smiling with a hint of pride. "We're honored to serve you then."

"And we're honored to be your guests." She smiled weakly, trying to keep her gaze steady and not give away her inner fear.

They fell into a quiet rhythm of conversation and food after that, each focused on their own worries.

After dinner, Julian and Garak went out, just to see the lights and the fireworks. When Bashir joined them, Garak spoke in an even voice. "Will my people really destroy all this?"

"Not destroy, but it certainly came close. They ravaged the lands and people for years. Eventually the Bajorans succeed in rebellion but ... they lost much in the meantime.”

"I can see why we'd form an alliance with the Founders after that, then. Cardassia didn't learn anything at all." This Garak really was different, even if he seemed like the same person. "Do you think there's any future where both Bajorans and Cardassians survive?"

Bashir nodded, a sense of sereneness coming over him. "I do. I believe there is room in the universe for both, as they are. I wonder if there's a place for all of us."

Julian swallowed quickly, barely whispering. "Do you think the timeline will believe that too?"

"We can only hope so." Bashir admitted as he looked down at his feet. He wouldn't make promises he couldn't keep. Not to Garak, and not to himself.

"In my experience, the universe is a cruel place. I wonder if it will really think we can all coexist, but I doubt it." Garak shook his head, gaze growing dim as he looked out past the Julians and toward the many possible futures. He was not one for shallow hope.

"Maybe not, but maybe your future will be brighter than either of the ones dealt out to you so far."

Children played around them, unaware of the future that may come, unaware of what was to be decided the next day.

Miles walked over to Julian, hands in his pockets as he stared down at the man wearing his friend's face. Julian followed him, curious. They seemed to be friends when they were on the Enterprise.

"Miles, was it? Sarina said you're an engineer." He hated himself for the weak conversation opener. Why couldn't he be like Garak, soft and snarky and able to devise a charming way to get people talking?

"Yes, I'm the chief engineer on our ship, actually. So, you're really Julian?"

Julian smiled brightly at that, something loosening in his chest at that. At least that man hadn't just cut the conversation short right at the beginning, leaving him to ramble nervously. "I've been Julian since I was born, yes. Only that it seems I'm 400 years too old."

“Or mine is 400 years too young. Doesn't look it, though.” Miles admitted with a small smile, shaking his head fondly.

"Are you friends?"

“Yeah, yeah, he’s my best friend actually.” Miles supposed it didn’t do any harm to admit it to this alternate Julian. He still looked for Bashir out of the corner of his eye, embarrassed.

"I didn't have friends until I woke up in the Enterprise. Before Garak and Sarina I was so lonely."

“To be honest, I don’t think my Julian had friends before Garak and me either. He was... if I’m honest, I thought he was annoying the first year I knew him. But he grows on you.”

"I've been called annoying before. And brash. Also some people say I like to show off too much. Not to mention when I start talking about medicine." Julian smiled softly, realizing he was being exactly the kind of annoying Miles was talking about. "Bones usually says I'm terrifying when I start to talk about brains."

"Gotta say I agree with Bones." Miles admitted with a bright laugh, shaking his head and patting him on the back. "But you're... you're a good mate. Compassionate and funny and a good sense of morals, most of the time."

"Your version of me looks sad. I... I was sad before Garak and Sarina, but he seems to have carried that even after the loneliness."

"I... yeah, I think he's still lonely, in his own way. I don't know why, you're - he's pretty private."

"I can't imagine me being like that, but then, in the Enterprise I woke up at the side of Khan so I didn't really have the chance of hiding my augmentation. He accused me of destroying his life."

“Khan?” Miles frowned.

"The last big augment leader. From what I read, he still was there in your timeline." He was feeling more and more confused. Did this man Miles know even less about history than Bashir?

"He was, I'm just kind of impressed you ruined his life."

"Why would that be ruining it? The crew accepted me without any problems."

"Wait, whose life did you ruin? I thought we were talking about Khan."

Julian was growing more confused by the minute. He shook his head quickly, furrowing his brow as he looked at the other man. "No, Bashir's. He said I ruined his life when I talked about my augmentation. Khan... He ruined himself, it had nothing to do with us. We are not that powerful, I'm afraid."

"Your... your augmentation?" Miles swallowed a bit, eyes wide as he took in Julian's words. He'd noticed Bashir being less clumsy, faster, but he had not even thought it was because something was off.

"Oh, um... You didn't know either, then?" Oh. And there he was, spilling the beans to yet another crew member. How had his counterpart managed at all to keep a secret?

“No, can’t say that I did. Wait, does that mean he’s letting me win at darts?” Miles opened his eyes almost comically wide.

Yes, definitely he was the same no matter the era. He really understood why Bashir did what he did. "If you lost all the time, would you still play with him?"

“Of course I’d play, you’re.. he’s my friend! Besides, we coulda found a way to make it fair”

"He doesn't think anybody would stay at his side if they knew how he really is. I didn't think that either, before Garak, and Sarina, and then the Enterprise. Being unique is lonely, Miles. You have no idea."

“No... I... suppose I don’t. But I’m not gonna leave him, now that I know. Doesn’t make a difference, not really.”

"I think somebody should have told him that so many years ago. I hope it's not too late now. And Miles? Thank you, for not wanting to leave him."

“Of course! Wouldn’t be much of a friend if I did, would I?” Miles gave this Julian a small, sad smile, shaking his head a bit. “He brags a lot, but sometimes he can be too hard on himself too.”

"Bragging is a way of convincing himself he's worthy. We both grew up with an overbearing father that thought destroying us to make a new son was a good parenting method. He... He was cruel, not just by making us go through the augmentation. Bragging, knowing things, being better... That was the only way that I was enough for him. He wanted a trophy, not a son."

Miles' expression changed, mouth twisting with anger as he shook his head. He’d wondered many times why Bashir was so opposed to having a family, why he never talked about his. "He doesn't talk much about his parents. I figured that things were less than good, but I didn't know how bad things were."

"It took me years to accept I didn't deserve what was done to me, and believe me, I'm not talking only about the augmentation."

“I didn’t think so. Someone willing to do that to their kids must be willing to do plenty else.”

Julian nodded slowly, not quite able to meet Miles’ gaze. "I don't think he'll ever be able to tell you. He's too hurt. He never quite processed what happened, I think."

"I... but you told your Garak."

"I didn't, not at first. He found out the truth about me when I was almost killed. After that, it was slowly realizing he wouldn't go away despite my augmentation. I guess the fact he was not human to begin with helped. We both were aliens in a human world."

“So I should... should I tell him I know and then just... act like normal then?” Miles asked in a soft voice, looking up at him with kind, open eyes. 

"Yes, just... He may need more than me to accept he won't be pushed away. He hid longer than me."

“Right. Right. That makes sense. He shouldn’t have — it wasn’t his fault. He shouldn’t have to hide because his parents messed things up.”

"It's not easy to be able to separate your sins from those of your parents, is it." Jadzia walked up to them and grabbed Julian's arm affectionately.

“Jadzia! Did you — you knew?” Miles sounded almost hurt.

"No, but I've been a father, a mother, a daughter and a son enough times to know what Julian here is talking about."

“Right, of course. We’ll do whatever we need to to make sure our Bashir feels appreciated.” Miles promised as he leaned back against the wall. “How did he — he’ll be investigated if anyone else finds out.” He ran his hands over his face, feeling suddenly tired.

"Things where you're from are that bad?"

“For augments, yeah.”

"Were there others after we woke up in the Enterprise?"

“Not that anyone knew about, but who knows.” Miles shrugged as he felt himself grow a bit tired. Who knew how many people out there like Julian there were, living in fear of being caught for something they had no control over?

"Then it is just prejudice. Somehow I think my timeline is a bit better, then. One man tries to conquer the world in 1997, and 400 years later you humans are still bitter?"

“That’s ... that’s hard to hear, but you might be right on that at least.” Jadzia admitted with a low sigh. Then she smiled, gaze brightening with an optimism that surpassed even his own. “Which means we just have to make a future there better for all of us.”

"If we even remember all these conversations after everything is done."

“Right. I hope... I hope whatever we do makes things better for all of us.” Miles said with a sudden sense of solemness. “I swear I’ll try to change things.”

Garak eyed Worf for a long while before deciding to approach him. While he had been told not to kill this Klingon in particular, he still felt his blood boil at the sight of him.

It was too public anyway, with the festival still going on, to kill him.

Worf raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms tightly against his chest. His voice was stiff when he spoke. “I don’t approve of what my people did to Cardassia in this universe.”

That certainly was not what Garak was expecting, and he resisted the urge to blink owlishly at him. "Ah, so you've heard of the dishonorable way we were wiped out. I believe the word for it is  _ massacre. _ "

“Yes, I believe it is and it was most dishonorable. It seems both our people are sadly capable of war crimes.” Worf sounded genuinely pained, gaze heavy as his eyes met the dust.

"Our guess is that they were led by Founders. Seems your people are weak to them no matter the timeline we're in." He was still feeling like needling him, even if Worf’s first words had been the closest he’d ever get to an apology from a Klingon.

“Maybe so. That’s an error in judgment I have questioned many times. I suppose we all have our weaknesses.” Worf looked despairing, plams going slack at his side.

"You're quite different to the other Klingons I encountered. Not to say...  _ more ridged _ . I wonder what happened to your people to look so human by the time I woke up." He almost sang the last words, purring them as he waited to see if the Klingon would bite and tell him what exactly had been going on.

“It was... that’s a long story. We don’t talk about it with outsiders.” Worf admitted with a pained smile. He shook his head, expression turning grim. “You’re not an innocent in my timeline as well.”

"I doubt I could be innocent in any timeline past my 14th birthday, mister Worf, although I think you're not so clean either."

"I've always acted the way I felt was most honorable."

“And that’s what counts for you, isn’t it? Honor.”

"My honor is what would prevent me from bombing your planet, and it is the only thing that kept me from snapping your neck when I thought you were going to do the same in my timeline."

Garak bowed his head, shame rushing through him. He found himself liking this man, despite being part of the group that represented everything he’d hated for a year. “Fair enough, commander. I’m glad to know that some Klingons have a limit.”

"Likewise. For all I find it hard to stand your presence, I still believe you won't be condemned to Gre'thor."

“I assume that is very kind of you. Hopefully maybe the next timeline will be kinder to us both.”

"If you don't try to use my ship to blow up a planet, it may be."

“Hopefully I won’t have reason to.” Garak gave him a shark like smile before walking away.

Bashir sat on the staircase of the inn, letting out a sharp breath as he closed his eyes. Everything about the past few days was strange. Too strange.

"Hello." Sarina's voice came from behind him, soft and sweet. She seemed quieter and more silent than she'd ever been, and under the lights, suddenly younger too.

Bashir glanced back at her, giving her a weary smile. “Sarina, hello.”

She sat at his side, looking at her hands for some moments. Finally she spoke, words barely more than a whisper. "I'm scared."

“I am as well. God knows what tomorrow will bring. I’m... I’m worried we’ll make a worse future.”

She shook her head, shoulders starting to tremble a little. "I'm thinking a bit more selfishly here. I'm scared I'll end up as the Sarina you know. I think... I deserve to be a bit scared for myself too, don't I?"

Bashir then realized what happened. She was feeling guilty. So much time being the strength of others, and perhaps those others had not realized she needed someone to support her too. Perhaps not even she had, being there all the time for her boys, not listening to her own needs.

“You don’t need to feel — you should be scared. Of course you should. Anyone would be terrified.” Bashir assured her as he squeezed her shoulder. He swallowed a bit, feeling a similar guilt swell up in him. Whose pain hadn’t he noticed, who had he selfishly ignored? “You have far more reason than the rest of us.”

"I don't want to give my life away." Suddenly, she was coming undone, tears falling from her eyes. "I don't want Julian and Garak to see me like this. I don't cry in front of them, I can't, they can't see me, but I... I... I’m sorry."

Bashir pulled her into a tight hug, brushing her hair away and letting her sob against his shoulder. They sat there like that for a while before he spoke. “You shouldn’t be, you know. They care about you. Being open with your vulnerabilities doesn’t mean you’re failing them.”

"I am their strength. They can't see me like this. They will have doubts if they do, and they have to go, they have to restore Cardassia. I can't let them see me. Don't tell them, please."

Her whole body was trembling as she realized she may be giving away her life. Bashir’s horrified expression when he realized who she was in his timeline was seared in her mind.

“I won’t tell them, but no one can be anyone’s strength, Sarina. We have to be our own.”

"I am not mine. Not now. I feel so scared."

“Trust me, I... I can’t say I understand exactly, but I’ve felt afraid before as well.”

"I don't think any of the futures have you being in that place, unlike me. I... I'm the one who gets the worst fate, it seems. You will lose some, gain some, but I... it's not fair. Sorry, I... we still have to go for it, it's the right thing, I just..."

“You don’t have to go if you don’t want to. No one can force you.” Bashir assured her, taking her hand and giving her a level gaze. “I won’t let them.”

"I want to. It's the right thing to do, nobody's forcing me. I just... I will lose everything. I worked hard! I fixed the Enterprise so many times. I learned the technology. Took the exams to join Starfleet, all of them in just one year, can you imagine? I barely slept at times, I trained, I studied, I mastered all these different skills. All of that will be erased."

He looked to the people around them, unaware of what was about to happen, laughing and dancing in the distance. “Maybe. But maybe the new future we make will be brighter for you. Maybe you won’t end up like the Sarina I read about at all.”

"All I have is hope. No proof, not a single certainty. And even then, that Sarina won't be me. She won't have ran away from her house when she was just a kid. She won't have found other Augments all by herself, who raised her and taught her to survive. She won't have befriended Julian and Garak, who bought an old boat and traveled the world for months with them. She won't have cut the wrong wiring on her first day in the Enterprise. She won't be the one who spent countless nights awake singing Cardassian lullabies to Garak until he calmed down. That Sarina will die."

“We all will.” Bashir said it with a surprising sense of calm. It wasn’t at all like her Julian. This older one... he knew of sacrifices, and of sometimes not being able to win.

"I don't want them to die either. Am I too selfish? we are just three people, and what's at stake is the whole universe. I... Julian and I, we both made the body count, we know how many people died in this reality, and here I am, crying. I shouldn't."

“It’s not wrong to cry. Even if it’s a sacrifice you’re willing to make, it’s still a sacrifice. You’re still giving up your life. And every life is worth a universe, Sarina.”

"I feel so selfish." She sobbed uncontrollably, letting this version of her brother comfort her. She never showed those feelings to Julian, she was always trying to be the strong one, to support him. It felt nice, allowing herself to be the younger sister, to be the one hurt for a change.

He held her close, choosing silence over words. He had never been good with them, and there didn’t seem any that were right for the moment.

"Will you seek me in the new reality?" her voice was a whisper.

“I promise that.... no, I can’t do that. I don’t know who that Julian will be. But I very much hope he will.”

"I don't want you to fade away either."

“I ... I don’t want that either. But I fear your Julian won’t exist anymore either. Neither of us. We are both the wrong Julian.”

"I know. I just don't want that. I wish I could have you both."

“I ... know. But ...” Julian covered his face with his hands. Some doctor he was, no comfort for a scared girl.

"I love you too, you know. You're not my Julian but you're a Julian, and that's enough for me. I don't want either of you to fade away."

“You might not feel the same way if you got to know me.” Bashir couldn’t help teasing, smirking a bit as he shook his head.

"I think I would. And here I am, discussing how I'll help you die so we can fix time. Talk about fairness. Nothing in our life has ever been, has it? we never deserved anything that happened to us." 

“No, neither of you did. Life hasn’t been kind enough to either of you, I’m afraid.”

"It hasn't been kind to you either, and for that I'm sorry. You deserved better." She leaned on him, sighing. Now she was finally feeling better.

“Maybe. But maybe this is the price I pay for the lies I’ve told.” 

"You lied to survive. I did too, and so did Garak. Is wanting to survive such a terrible sin for you? Because it isn't for me. I just wanted to live."

“It’s not the same. I didn’t have to lie like you and Julian did. I wouldn’t have been hunted or imprisoned. I just wouldn’t have been a doctor.”

She felt she was having the same conversation she’d had with Julian so many years ago, when they met at the boat. Some things never changed. Not Julian, at least. "Being a doctor is who you are. You can't separate that from yourself."

“Plenty of people throughout history haven’t been doing the job they wanted, Sarina.”

"I won't accept a future where you're not a doctor. I will fight if it's necessary."

“That might be your choice.” He smiled crookedly, thinking of the caged girl he hadn’t even met yet. How would she have fought for him?

"My choice is doing whatever I can for you and Garak to be who you have to be."

“Not at the expense of yourself. If that’s the only reason you’re doing this...”

"I know you'll find me and help me. I know you."

Bashir felt again he was failing himself. How had this past version of him managed to have this little girl have so much faith in him, when he didn’t even have it anymore? “I hope I do. I’m sorry I hadn’t yet in my own timeline.”

"You will, I just know. And maybe, maybe I won't be the Sarina you know. I can't imagine the one you got is the one that was a threat. I just... it's so unfair having to kill the one I am now."

“I agree quite strongly. I wish there was another way... I don’t... you deserve a life. All of you. If I could trade my reality to preserve you and your Julian, I would.”

"I know you would." She hugged him tightly. "I guess this is our last night, for better or worse. It was an honor being your sister."

“It was an honor meeting you. I wish we’d had more time. You’re so young.”

She leaned on him and fell asleep, curling on herself. She felt so young, so small. For once she was tired of being the strong one, and this version of her brother had the strength to be the one supporting her.

When Sisko came out he found them curled up together, with Julian softly singing in Kardassi to her. He softly took her in his arms and took her upstairs, to only then go sit with Bashir.

“Do you want to talk, doctor? I will do everything in my hands to help her, tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Captain. Save her. I don’t... I don’t know what to ask for me, honestly. I don’t know which Julian is better off.”

"I won't be the same either, I suspect. But whatever happens, I know the Prophets are still one in this reality. So I'll ask for you."

“That makes sense. I... I’m lonely, Captain.”

"You miss your Garak, don't you?"

Bashir sighed and felt the fight go out of him. The lights were now coming out, with the last people going to sleep. “I do. I didn’t realize how much until I saw this other me with him. I loved him, Captain.”

"Not in past tense, doctor. You still do. And maybe tomorrow you’ll have a second chance."

They walked the city the next morning, and most Bajorans bowed their heads at them. It seemed the rumor of a rogue vedek had spread, and Sisko blessed every person that asked him to. It was an amazing sight, peace and power radiating from him as he kneeled and talked with the kids.

They got to the edge of the city, Sisko stopping to say one final prayer. They would make their way up the steps to the monastery soon. Odo waited for them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, this chapter ended up being longer than expected!
> 
> Comments and kudos are love, especially now we're so close to the end!


	28. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group meets Odo, and finally what has been happening and what they need to fix becomes clear.
> 
> \--------------------
> 
> _A vedek smiled when they arrived, eyes sharp and knowing as if he had seen them all before. "I knew you'd eventually find the way here. Maybe this face will be more familiar to you." He changed it to the old Odo’s one, but it was different. Older, more defined. Closer to a human one._
> 
> _Sisko smiled at him, though there was something almost pained in his gaze. He took a step closer to him, reaching a hand out to grasp his shoulder. “Hello, old friend. I see you finally mastered faces.”_
> 
> _"Yes, old is what I am now. I've seen you come here and fail so many times already. I’ve searched, waited and despaired for over 1000 years."_

A vedek smiled when they arrived, eyes sharp and knowing as if he had seen them all before. "I knew you'd eventually find the way here. Maybe this face will be more familiar to you." He changed it to the old Odo’s one, but it was different. Older, more defined. Closer to a human one.

Sisko smiled at him, though there was something almost pained in his gaze. He took a step closer to him, reaching a hand out to grasp his shoulder. “Hello, old friend. I see you finally mastered faces.”

"Yes, old is what I am now. I've seen you come here and fail so many times already. I’ve searched, waited and despaired for over 1000 years."

“We don’t plan to fail this time. What happened?”

Odo shook his head, expression grim and eyes far away. "I’ve already told this story so many times, Captain, in so many different situations that always end in disaster. I heard you say you won’t fail so many times.” 

Julian came closer to him, giving the stranger a crooked smile. “Maybe this time will be different. We have Captain Kirk trying to stop them from following us here.”

“He won’t be able to contain them.” 

“Then hurry up and tell us what we need to know and what we need to do.” Sisko looked him in the eye until Odo nodded.

“Some Founders were not in agreement with the end of the war, and how we had to surrender. That notion expanded fast on my planet, and then they started to plan how to correct things. I was on Bajor then, and by the time I was aware of what was happening, I had a full riot in my hands and I couldn’t dissuade them. By the time I learned about their plans, several members of my species had gotten their hands on a time displacement device, stolen from a crashed Federation vessel from the XXIX century. I went back to Bajor, took the Time Orb to protect it, and that's how I was spared when the first change was made. I was conscious of what had happened, unlike all of you. It was... Devastating."

"What did they do?" Sisko asked.

"They murdered you in your youth."

Sisko raised an eyebrow, expression almost eerily calm despite his words. "That certainly sounds like an effective way of taking me out of the equation."

"Yes, but it backfired. You were not in the Bell Riots, humanity didn't get to space, the Federation was never formed. The wormhole then was discovered by a Klingon-Cardassian alliance that wiped out the Jem'hadar in just a year. Emperor Worf ordered the bombing of the planet below, killing all life on Bajor." Odo sighed tightly, his hands shaking a little as he spoke. Behind them, Worf made a strangled side. "It was even bloodier than the reality we originally met, Captain. Removing you was a mistake that almost annihilated all my species, and certainly obliterated yours."

Sisko nodded, raising an eyebrow as he considered those words. “Which means they tried again, or I wouldn’t be here, having this conversation. Why did they remove the doctor from the timeline?”

"The first times they didn't realize his importance. They tried to displace several other people, including Khan." Odo laughed without humor. "I don't need to tell you what a universe with Khan in the Defiant looked like. Just... just take a moment to imagine the devastation that event caused.” 

Sarina raised her eyebrows, a pained expression in her face. “I don’t need to. I lived in a reality where he bombed my whole world, after all.”

Odo looked at her with deep sorrow and took her hands into his. “In the one where Botany Bay was found in the XXIV century, he killed you, Miss Douglas, and doctor Bashir too, when you interfered with his plans. I was unable to stop him.” 

She snorted bitterly, shaking her so some of her hair fell in her face. “My future seems brighter and brighter every minute. From catatonic to dead girl walking, how many options for me.”

“I’m sorry to be the one telling you that. But then... The changelings discovered the doctor had been pivotal in curing me at the end of the war, and thus, my whole species, in the original timeline as well as in several others. Their first attempt was removing the doctor and the one that infected me in the first place, but another human took that agent’s place and the infection spread anyway. They tried to replace agents with changelings, and again, they were discovered by doctor Bashir. Every timeline in which the quadrant didn’t collapse before or right after the discovery of the wormhole led to doctor Bashir being the one that ended the war." 

“So I’m necessary for saving you.” Bashir added with a fond smile as he leaned in to meet Odo’s gaze. He shook his head a few times, as though not quite believing it. “So am I from the time you’re from, from the original one?”

"No, in the first timeline, the one I had to flee, you had Garak at your side, and Sarina was a science officer. But she helped you restrain the man who infected me, and even removing you meant she still was able to help the one that took your place.” 

Doctor Crusher was sent after the doctor posted in DS9 was killed in the internment camp, and she had, along with Sarina, found the cure. Yet it had not been that effective and the founders had found themselves decimated. No matter what they did, if the illness was developed and the doctor was not Julian, the cure always failed.

“Even when they managed to prevent the illness from spreading among my people - Odo, really, that one was on you.” He looked at his younger version with a wry smile, though there was a touch of annoyance in his gaze as well. “Other threats were created or the Cardassian rebelled against their occupying forces.

“What about me, then? I didn’t develop a cure, or stop the agents, it seems.” Garak crossed his arms, raising an eye ridge curiously.

Odo laughed, though it sounded almost strangled. “No, my friend, you’re a wild card that either destroyed the quadrant or saved it, time and again. Sometimes you prevented the Cardassian occupation on Bajor by deserting and joining the rebellion, others you blew up the Founders’ planet. In one you even allied yourself with Section 31 to create the illness. I’ll admit, I was quite annoyed with you in that particular one. The times Julian was not there, you were the most destructive force I’ve ever seen, and that’s saying something.”

“Why was I catatonic, then? It seems I was actually helpful in making them healthy again.” Sarina frowned tightly.

“Yes, but chief Douglas also found a way to disable the jem’hadar ships’ shields when she was put in O’Brien’s place, in the timelines she was an engineer. I’ve seen her manage to finish the war before it even started. So they tried messing with her augmentation, but then, that only meant she helped Bashir when the other Augments attacked him and tied him up, trying to make the Federation surrender to the Dominion.” 

“I told you I was brilliant.” She said to Miles, winking and he let out a surprised laugh.

He smiled at her and patted her on the shoulder. “I’ll try to remember and get you in my team when we fix this, then, but I’d appreciate it if you don’t just take my place.”

“I promise I won’t, if I manage to be able to talk in the next iteration.”

Miles grew serious again. “So, why displace them? It still doesn’t make any bloody sense, Odo.”

“The Founders decided they could use them, make them spawn more Augments, since everything pointed to the fact they could be useful. Still their first attempts were not successful, as long as Cardassia was standing."

Garak looked at him pensively, swallowing down the bile rising in his throat. He wondered if they’d been friends in the original timeline. They seemed to be similar in some ways, after all. Both men who understood the sacrifices that had to be made, both loyal to the end. Both capable of creating so much chaos, even if Odo would probably deny what he did was that, instead claiming he was bringing order. “So if all three of us are together as we were at the original time, things go badly for your people.”

"Yes. Remove any other member of the crew, and either their role in the war is taken by another person and nothing changes, or things go wrong too quickly. You don’t want to know what happened when they took out Kira.” 

Certainly the Major they’d had in Deep Space 9 in that first version where she was removed had been callous, bloodthirsty, and what’s more, had killed Sisko in the first year on the station. That had created, yet another paradox by removing him from the Bell Riots. The founders had been lucky to survive at all in that one, as he allied himself with Sloan and got whole planets sterilized. They made sure to replace Kira with milder people from then on, but that had its own setbacks. Kira was the only one … she was the one.

“But you... You three are the key." Odo gave another bitter laughter. "Believe it or not, Garak was far more dangerous being apart from you. In one of the iterations he did manage to blow up the Founders planet. And doctor Bashir was more ruthless and actually delivered his calculations at the beginning of the war in another one. They realized you two needed to still be close or either the Federation or the Dominion collapsed too soon."

“So the timeline isn’t  _ entirely _ my fault.” Bashir said dryly, rolling his eyes. All that time he’d imagined he had done something terrible, to make them send him back in time and away from everything he knew.

Odo looked at him with wide eyes and smiled almost in amusement. “What made you think it was, doctor? I think the best version of you would be one with Douglas and Garak at your side. In your timeline, the one you’ve traveled back in time just now, I sadly saw already how it would end. Let me assure you, not all of you would be alive at the end of the war.” Odo hesitated in telling Sisko that Jadzia would die when he refused to listen to the Prophets. No, he didn’t need to know his mistake would kill his best friend. “Both you and Garak spiraled out of control in the last years, without anybody to keep your worst at bay and your best outside. You three bring the best out in each other. Alone you are too chaotic... Especially Garak. He did blow up a planet after all.”

Garak looked at him with a lopsided smile. “I’m sure that planet deserved it.”

“Oh yes, as if I’m going to tell you blowing up my entire species was your brightest moment.”

“What about Sarina? It seems Julian and I alone are the ones who create disaster.”

“If it serves as any consolation, in the couple timelines she pursued command, she was the most terrifying force of the Quadrant. They displaced her to be a bit older than Sisko so she’d be on the Enterprise instead of Riker, facing the borg the first time they were encountered. They hoped they could help change the course of history.”

“And I imagine I changed it for the worst, considering your expression.”

Oh yes, she’d been in the bridge that day, and then she’d destroyed the cube when Picard was abducted, killing him. That had resulted in a milder version of Sisko, still married to Jennifer when he arrived to DS9, but his lack of edge had made the station vulnerable to the Cardassians, who had retaken it as soon as the wormhole was discovered.

“Yes, you really shouldn’t go for command.”

“I’ll bear it in mind, next time I’m born.”

Odo shook his head and looked at Bashir with pained eyes. “But the biggest mistake was the Federation pursuing you as if being augmented was a bad thing. Both you and Douglas were not allowed to live to your potential in most of the timelines, and I believe that’s how they managed to keep you tamed. By making you fear the punishment so much that you didn’t show who you were and what you really could do."

Bashir smiled softly at that, almost not believing what he was hearing. He had never contemplated the possibility that in any reality he could be better by being himself, instead of what he thought the world wanted him to be. “That’s a little insulting, Odo. I’m a good doctor.”

"Yes, and potentially the most important man of the galaxy. That's why they couldn't just erase you."

“A - Am I?”

"Without you in the future, there's no way either Federation or Dominion can survive. Every single one of them was erased at some point and things went out of control too fast. I’ve seen timelines my people managed to find some peace without Sisko, Jadzia, Kira, Worf, but I have yet to see one where you’re missing and things go right. Even erasing Garak or Douglas resulted in some stable timelines, but neither civilization can survive without you, doctor. If the Federation doesn't fall, the Dominion does, and in some of the timelines, because you weren't there to make the cure. Once I even saw both, and Cardassia too, sink into chaos, with Romulus devastating the whole quadrant. You're the one who can bring equilibrium to the war, in the end. Not a warrior as Jadzia or Worf, not an Emissary as Sisko, not a secret agent or a mechanic. A healer."

“So I suppose my career as a secret agent doesn’t take off?” Bashir asked lightly even as the weight of the words hit him. He was necessary. They all were. Remove any of them from the timeline and things fall apart. He smiled at Jadzia, gaze equally terrified and oddly proud. “Then we better get around to fixing it.”

"Yes. You're the missing piece to give the future a chance."

“So we... we are necessary.” Julian took Garak’s hand and held it tightly.

"You're the key to restoring the timeline to one where the Founders, Cardassia or the Klingon Empire don't conquer everything. We need to balance the universe again. I think time itself at this point has been torn apart so many times it won’t be able to resist any more changes."

They then heard a sound they knew far too well. Bombs were falling to the ground. That was a sound Julian would never be able to forget, or confuse for anything else. He’d been in far too many bombings in his short life.

"The augments! They destroyed the Federation fleet, let's move inside the temple!" Julian instinctively grabbed his friends and ran, searching for shelter. This was their last stance. The future would either win or lose here.

They ran inside and saw what Odo had been collecting. The orbs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only one chapter and the epilogue left now!! It was equally fun and hard to keep track of all the alternate realities we try to tie up here!
> 
> Comments and kudos are love, especially now we're nearing the end of such a long story.


	29. Chapter 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One orb for each member of the party. The end is near.
> 
> \------------------------
> 
> _A Prophet wearing Spock's face walked forward, looking at Julian, Garak, and Sarina. "Why are you here?"_
> 
> _“We want to fix what went wrong.” Julian said with a boldness he didn’t quite feel. He knew what they needed to do, even if he didn't know how._
> 
> _"But you're lineal. How can you know what's right or wrong?"_

“The orbs. You have all of them.” Sisko was amazed, looking at them with reverence. There were 10 boxes, neatly aligned and closed, waiting for them.

"Yes. It took me 1000 years to get them all. The Orb of the Emissary was the last one. I think it was the missing key to fixing the time and finally going forward." Odo sighed softly, placing one hand over the top of the box. He pressed his mouth into a thin line. "Sometimes I find it hard to remember how things were before. How Nerys looked. The timeline doesn't usually allow her to even be born."

“I... Kira was not at my side in most of the timelines?” Sisko asked as he walked around the small space, hands shaking. Trying to imagine the world without Kira was impossible for him now.

"Most of the time, she isn't, or she’s killed at a young age. I think in this timeline she won't be, either. I'm pretty sure the Founders will ravage this land now they have an augmented fleet. Nothing will ever grow on Bajor again."

“I won’t allow that.” Sisko said with a fierceness that shocked Julian and Garak. 

Garak took a step forward with a tight smile, meeting Odo’s gaze firmly. They didn’t have time to waste on what if’s and who was or wasn’t here. They needed to act. “I assume you weren’t collecting those orbs for fun?”

"No. These are sacred for the Bajoran people, and they each have a power. I think the only reason we are meeting despite being from different timelines is because of their combined power and because time itself is weak now, which probably means the Prophets wanted us to fix it in the first place. You are, after all, one for each orb. We are coming from three different realities that should never have mixed."

Sisko nodded slowly, feeling a sense of calm wash through him as he considered this was all part of a larger plan. Then as the explosions sounded closer, he turned to his crew, his friends. "Let the orbs choose you. Close your eyes and go where you're called."

Jadzia took one step forward, being called by the first one. The Orb of Memory. She felt a connection with her Symbiont at an ever deeper level than before. She opened the box and pressed her hand against the Orb, watching as a faint glow came over it. Yes, she could feel this power, this energy.

There was a glance between the others. Then Sisko moved swiftly toward the Orb of the Emissary. He was done with fighting his destiny, his duty, his love of Bajor. He glowed as he smiled, feeling at peace, feeling he was where he belonged.

Julian walked to the Orb of the Soul, while Bashir, smiling at him, took his place at the Orb of Possibilities. He knew that the future held them, if they could make that future happen. They were two sides of the same coin, and their spirit held possibility. Their soul was what held the option for a better tomorrow.

Miles walked over to the Orb of Truth, placing his hands over it. He wasn’t sure how this worked, but he supposed he wasn’t much of a liar. Hopefully that was good enough. He was not much of a spiritual man, so he hoped he’d be accepted as he was. The Orb emitted a soft light and hummed, and Miles smiled. This felt  _ right, _ this felt like... home.

Next one was Worf, walking right to the Orb of Destiny. He smiled when the soft light emerged, feeling the sense of duty in his chest growing. Yes, this orb understood. Duty, honor, destiny... now he saw, they were all intertwined in a way that could never be separated.

Garak went for the Orb of Change. Yes, he'd changed so much in this timeline. Certainly he was not the same bitter man the Defiant crew knew, even if he had a sadness that would never be erased. He was not the man who’d blow up a planet. Julian and Sarina had seen to that, making him be better.

Sarina walked next, touching the Orb of Time. She was young, but she'd been alive so long, and through so many different lives. She felt new and old, split between two selves, introspective and extroverted at the same time. She’d been so many different persons in each of the timelines, she had pursued all the possible tracks in Starfleet. Time had proven she had infinite potential.

The young Odo moved toward the Orb of Contemplation. He had always been thoughtful, always tried to consider the best and most just course. He felt this was  _ It _ . He felt the light of the Prophets around him, understanding all he'd been through and finding him noble and worthy.

Finally, the old Odo walked to the last orb, the Orb of Wisdom. He pressed his hands against it, letting the wisdom of all his lives — the good and the bad — run over him. He'd been alive for so long now, he’d seen himself be so many different persons. He'd seen so much, been so sad, but he'd never stopped trying to fix what his people had broken. The Prophets gently surrounded him, offering comfort after all he'd been through.

The light surrounded all of them, the energy of the Prophets passing through them.

All of them but Sisko gasped as they found themselves in a white space, surrounded by people that looked like their loved ones, but not quite. Something was not the same in their eyes. They were faintly aware of their physical bodies being blown away as the temple succumbed to the bombing, and knew this was their last chance to make things right. The old Odo, the Orbs, themselves... None of that existed anymore. They were only consciousness inside the wormhole now.

A Prophet wearing Spock's face walked forward, looking at Julian, Garak, and Sarina. "Why are you here?"

“We want to fix what went wrong.” Julian said with a boldness he didn’t quite feel. He knew what they needed to do, even if he didn't know how.

"But you're lineal. How can you know what's right or wrong?"

“Because we’re lineal but we’ve still seen the different possibilities, we’ve heard all what we could become. And none of them have been correct.” Garak chimed in with a small smile, shaking his head at this not Spock.

"Correct or incorrect are terms only people living in time believe in. We just see all of them as the way things are." Kira approached them slowly, her face strangely lacking any emotion.

“Maybe so, but then why not see a new possibility?” Bashir threw out with a warm smile. To think of a timeline where she didn't exist... No, certainly that was a wrong one.

"Is the Emissary in agreement?” Jake came from behind and looked curiously at his not-dad. 

“Of course.”

“Why? He's seen how life outside linear time is, why does he still want change?" 

Sisko smiled warmly, not able to keep a bit of fondness from coming into his gaze. Jake or not, that presence was warm, familiar. Home. “Because I care about the people who still live in the lineal time. I want to help them in any way I can.”

"And how can you be sure you're taking the right decision when you can't see the consequences?"

“We can't. That’s part of the danger of being linear. But it’s also part of the beauty.”

"But how can you make a choice if there's a danger too?" Palandine appeared too, and Garak winced a bit, his ridges stiffening just a hair.

Julian and Bashir both glanced at him, raising their eyebrows in almost perfect unison. Garak kept himself focused on Palandine — no, the Prophet — in front of him. “Some things are worth the risk. The future we all want is for us.”

"Neither of you will exist if the time is corrected. Another Bashir will be there, but it won't be you." A young trill woman, short hair and Starfleet uniform, looked at them. They didn't know her, not yet, anyway, but something... Something was oddly familiar. The name Ezri resonated in their minds. "Are you ready to sacrifice your existence and memories? All you've done with your lives in these timelines?"

Bashir nodded at her. “I... yes, I am. If it means a future where Cardassia survives and The Federation and Bajor are better off... that’s worth sacrificing my existence and the memories I’ve made so far.”

"You two will become one and be yet different. All these years trying to make things right will be erased." Mora Pol addressed both Odos.

“I know. I am willing to let go of those things if it means Kira exists in a world that gives her some happiness.”

"And you? Your kind was/is used to cause so much pain and suffered much." Worf's human mother looked at him, past and present tenses sounding at the same time. His father nodded at her side.

"I believe we can cause less pain and feel less suffering, and be more honorable. I will strive toward that in any possible future, and do whatever I can to make my people see that too."

Curzon took Jadzia’s hands, expression oddly still. “You don’t know what will become either of you or of Dax if things change.”

“Perhaps, but I’m willing to take that chance.” She squeezed his fingers, smiling brightly at him. “After all, we Daxes are all adventurous people, aren’t we?”

The Founders nodded and surrounded them. All their loved ones, from different timelines, were around them. Some they had not met yet, some they would never meet in the timelines they had lived in. It didn’t matter. They felt a deep connection to all of them.

"You are all in agreement, then?" Molly looked up at Miles. "You can't predict what will be of your children when time changes, how can you be sure you'll be giving them a better future?"

He bent his knee and kneel at her side, touching her cheek gently. "I can't, but I can hope and have a bit of faith, and certainly the war has been hard on them too. I know these people, they're good people and they wouldn't be doing things unless something needed to change."

"So, you all agree?" Sisko's mother came to the front, taking her son's hands.

"We all agree, mother." Sisko confirmed as he took her hands, giving her an understanding smile. He just  _ knew _ , he knew who she was, who he was, how he'd been made.

They were again conscious of the bombings destroying their physical place, their physical bodies, and then... Silence. Blackness. A sense of fulfillment.

  
And there was a light.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just the epilogue left now! we'll really appreciate comments now we're finally closing this huge story!


	30. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Every adventure comes to an end. But the end sometimes is the beginning, as well.

Year 2369, just after the Federation's arrival to DS9.

Sarina walked out of the runabout that had just carried her to her first posting. She was lucky to have gotten that assignment. Miles O'Brien was rumored to be the best engineer in the area, and helping rebuild a devastated planet... She certainly wanted that. She’d studied every Cardassian machine she could get her hands on, she knew she’d be useful.

Meanwhile on another part of the station, Doctor Julian Bashir gave himself one final look over. He was excited but nervous to start his day as the Chief Medical Officer on Deep Space 9. Something about the place had just called to him.

He'd had to work hard, since even his augmented status hadn't kept him from being a social disaster, but he was sure this was the place. He'd finally fit in, and maybe even meet some exciting people, like... dashing spies, or something like that. 

“Scratch that, you silly man. Spies are just a fantasy. As if some mysterious agents would be stationed in the same place I am.”

Still, he combed his hair one last time, running his fingers through it nervously. He wanted to look perfect.

Garak opened his shop for the morning and watched the new customers walk by, sighing with resignation. This was not the life he would have chosen for himself, but at least it was not too terrible. He could have ended up at an even more backwards place, after what he’d done. Oh well, at least he didn't have to deal with the cardassian military again, he supposed. And the end of the war had brought a new Bajoran Major to the station, Kira, who had gotten her promotion after killing Dukat. So some things were rather wonderful. 

Julian walked down the promenade, eyes drawn to a shop with brightly colored clothes and patterns in the window. He stopped in front of it, wondering why this felt so oddly familiar. 

He saw a Cardassian busying himself with the new models. He was changing all the Cardassian fashion for Federation ones and seemed quite occupied, but then, when had Julian noticed when people didn't have time for him? Just when he was about to enter, Sarina bumped into him, making him fall.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Sarina leaned over and offered him a hand, her smile warm and friendly, open. Julian glanced up at her and returned it with a wide grin of his own as he shook it from the floor, awkward pose as his too long limbs seemed not sure of where to stay.

"Are you... You seem..." He lowered his voice, eyes flashing with curiosity. He so rarely met people like him. "Are you the new augmented girl?" While the ones subjected to the treatment in their childhood were not condemned as they had had no say in that, certainly still there were certain lingering prejudices, especially since Khan's rebellion had been what pushed the world into the economic crisis that ended in the Bell Riots.

She nodded enthusiastically, smile turning thoughtful as she leaned in to peer at Julian more closely. Yes, she could tell somehow that he was like her. She couldn’t help the excitement that rushed through her, she hadn’t met many other augments yet, even if she knew some still existed. “You’re Julian Bashir then, the augmented doctor.”

"Yes!"

"I bet you're a genius, then."

His grin grew wide as he took into her bright expression, a mischievous look coming into his eyes. "Well, yes, of course, but I still sometimes make little mistakes during tests, so people would like me. Once I confused a preganglionic nerve with a postganglionic gland! You should have seen the face of the professor!" He seemed to shine as he told her about that thing that had no meaning for her.

She laughed anyway, shaking her head as she leaned against the wall. “You shouldn’t. You’re brilliant, why not use that to everyone’s advantage.”

"Because people don't always like it."

“Well those people sound quite ridiculous.” A voice called out from behind them.

Both Sarina and Julian looked up from the floor, curious about the voice, and hurried to disentangle themselves and get up.

Garak smiled thoughtfully at the two, tilting his head a bit as he took in the slinky young man in front of him.

"Are you... I heard... They say when the Cardassian left they left behind one of them." Julian spluttered before he could stop himself, eyes wide. Maybe space spies did exist after all.

“Yes, that would be me, though I think saying left behind sounds a bit like I was a forgotten object.”

"Oh, um... Well, I'm, I'm doctor Julian Bashir." He didn't quite know how to answer, though he really hoped that man would invite him to drink something.

“What a lovely name. Tell me doctor, what brings you to Deep Space 9?” he leaned into his personal space, smiling sharply with a shine to his eyes.

"I'm here as the medical officer. Just out of the academy." Julian looked proud, not able to keep from preening a bit. 

“How exciting. It’s so good to have new blood here.”

"I'll leave you guys at it. I'm going to engineering, I'm sure O'Brien must be suffering from the Cardassian settings of the station." Sarina smiled and ran off. She was anxious to start rewiring the station. Her face was red and her hair was messy when she arrived.

Miles smiled tiredly at her, relieved to have someone else to help him. He turned from the machinery he was working on, raising an eyebrow. He’d been begging Starfleet to send him more people for days. “Sarina Douglas, is it?"

"Yes! I've been researching the Cardassian tech we managed to salvage from the war, so I hope I'll be useful."

“Now that’s the kind of excitement I wish all my engineers would show.”

"Give me a laser cutter and I'll show you excitement." She grinned as she threw her hands out. She couldn’t wait to start fixing things. 

“You really are happy to be in space, I see.”

“Yes. I belong here, I think.”

Julian Bashir was certainly impressed at the way Garak handled the Duras sisters. He felt... He felt he'd known that man all his life, even if they've been introduced only a few days ago.

He entered his shop and leaned back on his work table, crossing his ankles and smiling widely.

"So, my dear tailor, do you Cardassians celebrate after an accomplished mission?"

"Not usually. What about you humans?" The tailor smiled at him, getting up and leaning on the table. Garak moved closer to him. That human was different, he could tell. Not just his smell. He... He felt like he'd known him all his life. Or maybe waited for him his whole life. It made no sense, but it was still there.

"Oh, yes, we do. Wine, food, music.. we're quite a wild species. If you came to my quarters tonight, I could show you."

"I look forward to it. I'll bring the wine, you bring the wildness."

That night Garak wondered why the stars seemed to be so much brighter when he watched them from Julian's window. Garak smiled to himself as he listened to the soft breath of Julian sleeping at his side. For once everything felt all right. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We finally got to the end of this story! it is the longest and most complex one we've done yet, and it was a real journey to write it. At some point Sarina was at risk of being restored to her catatonic state, since we toyed with the idea of ending it with a sadder note.
> 
> We want to thank all the comments we've got, and we'd be delighted to know what you think of the story now it is finished!


End file.
